Piano Man
by Chooper21
Summary: Marinette always dreamed of playing the piano as a little girl. Letting this slip to Chat Noir she'd never expected that he himself played. When Adrien learns of Marinette's desire to play piano, Chat Noir decides to give her lessons.
1. Chapter 1

The night was especially humid, Marinette eating her favourite Magnum on her balcony whilst trying to regain her breath in the heat. There hadn't been much going in terms of social life, Alya had been holidaying in French Guiana, and Nino off doing his dj-ing every other day and Adrien, well he'd been busy with photo-shoots for most of the holidays. She'd managed to learn to speak to him proficiently in the few years that they'd known each other and had become close with him, bonding over their mutual dislike for Chloe and her selfish antics. However in these dark hours it wasn't her friends she'd found herself missing recently. After spending many nights on patrol with Chat, she found she missed the puns, the laidback picnics and perhaps even the flirting. Not that she ever did it back. But he was so easy to talk to she felt like she was having withdrawals. I just miss his company, she told herself. She collapsed back into the chair on the rooftop and pressed a cold hand to her face. She was flushed and really should go back inside, but that meant looking at the pile of homework due back at school in two weeks. The hot weather fried her brain, and above all gave her a combination of sleepiness and a lack of motivation. The flowers on her little rose bush overhanging the balcony were wilting and she felt a pang of guilt. She'd neglected them, too.

Getting up slowly, she put her ice-cream stick and wrapper down on the wooden table and found the watering can, filling it up and giving her flowers a generous spread. A dull thud on the railing next her turned her attention from the flowers.

"Good evening, Princess," said Chat Noir, cheeky smile on his face.

"Good evening, Chat Noir, what brings you here on this horrible evening?" she said, turning her attention back to the flowers, hiding the smile on her face.

"Horrible?" he asked, eyebrow cocked, avoiding the question.

"It's humid, and you're out here wearing black spandex, what on earth compelled you to think that was a good idea?"

"I needed to get out the house, I find it rather stifling in there compared to out here, and I thought I hadn't seen you in a while, so here I am," he said honestly.

Marinette blinked. Another house call. As far as she knew, nobody else had had house calls from Chat. "Surely the house of Chat Noir wouldn't be so bad?"

"You'd be surprised," he said flatly. She'd hit a sore note.

Adrien wasn't willing to divulge any more than that, it was unnecessary of him to put that on Marinette's shoulders, especially as a superhero. But what else was there to say? She was observant in her own right and Adrien knew that she watched other people's emotions very closely.

"Perhaps you'd like an ice-cream, then?" she said, giving him a gentle smile.

Adrien grinned. Of course he would. The fact that he'd seen her walking in the park with the little girl she babysat just hours before inspired him to drop in. He'd been busy most of the summer, what with all the fashion shows, fencing tournaments and piano recitals there'd been little time left for him, let alone seeing friends. He missed Marinette, Plagg told him, and advised him to do something about it. She dropped downstairs momentarily as he took in the surroundings. She was right, it was horrible out here. Adrien himself liked summer, but when it was this muggy, being outside was preferable. There was a tap on his shoulder and she'd returned with a Magnum, one with the same packaging as the one she'd finished previously. "Why thank you Marinette," he said, struggling to open to packet. She giggled and took it back from him, opening it for him. "Bloody claws."

It was different being on her balcony just her and him. He liked it. There was much to be said for her company, entertaining, fulfilling and not a dull moment. He wasn't sure if she could say the same for him but it was so easy being around her. She put on some quiet music and laid back on the seat.

"Not too many akuma attacks recently, huh, Chat?"

There hadn't been. He'd been looking forward to seeing his Lady over the summer, but found himself thoroughly disappointed when the most they did was patrol. There hadn't been much action over the past two weeks, so patrol would have to do. Having said that, she at least lingered a little longer when they went to leave, and even let a couple of laughs go at the puns. "No, not busy by any means," he said, licking the ice cream.

"Gives you time to, you know, be yourself?" she asked.

"Sometimes I prefer being Chat," he said, looking at her bluebell eyes. "It's freeing to jump over the rooftops and run away from responsibility."

"I suppose," she said. "If I was a superhero, I'd still like time to be able to… I don't know, listen to music, and design some new clothes, though."

"I've seen a couple of your designs," he said, almost slapping himself. "They're good."

"How have you seen my designs?" she asked incredulously.

"I have my ways," he said suspiciously. He tried desperately to turn the topic of discussion away, talking about the music instead of fashion. "What sort of music do you listen to?"

"Jagged Stone, Queen, some classical, sometimes a little bit of Broadway," she replied, looking at the horizon.

"Queen has brilliant piano music," he said, slipping into Adrien once more. It was just the way she made him feel. And since he'd actually grown to appreciate the stuff he could play, this conversation was more than welcome.

Marinette looked at him. She was surprised. She'd never pegged Chat as a musical type person. But then again, she was a superhero, not a detective. "Piano, huh?"

"Yeah, I've played it for a while now," he said, suddenly looking more alive.

"I always wanted to learn as a little girl, but money and stuff… And I guess I'm too old to learn now," she said, watching him.

"You're never too young to learn," he said quickly. Inwardly he frowned. What was he going to do, offer her lessons? In his head it seemed like a good idea. "You should take it up if you want to play."

"But what if I'm no good at it?"

He scoffed. "Marinette Dupain-Cheng, bad at piano my ass."

Her face went slightly pink. And not because of the heat. She was sure Chat hadn't meant it like that, but she couldn't help but feel a little happier after hearing it. "I don't know Chat Noir, it… I don't know. Where would I find someone to teach me?"

"In the papers, on the internet, anywhere, if you know where to look," he said, shrugging as if it was as easy as the click of his fingers. She fought back the urge to roll her eyes. He'd always been like that. Of course he thinks it's easy.

"Oh yeah, and what grade are you playing?"

"That doesn't matter," he said, not falling for her trick as instantly as she wanted. "Marinette if you want to play, just play. There's heaps of stuff online to help you anyway."

"Chat I don't even have a piano, what am I supposed to practise on?" she whined, losing the 'Noir' of his name unconsciously.

"You don't think there aren't a thousand pianos around town that you can't play on?"

"Chat…"

"Tell you what, I'll show you a place, free of charge my-my princess," he said, standing abruptly and pulling her gently from the seat. She fought back a smile and paused the music on her phone, slipping it into her pocket. Lifting her up, he took her a few blocks away to an abandoned hall, with a lone piano hidden in top floor. The architecture of the room made her swoon, and she began to believe it was built solely for the purpose of a piano concert. There was enough room for a small orchestra, but as Chat told her, not too much reverb in the room, which bode well for the piano sound. The only thing he couldn't promise was whether it was in tune or not. As Chat fiddled with the keys, she admired the crown moulding and brilliant ceiling roses, all positioned around the lights in the room. The baby blue paint was a little dusty, but she could tell it had been a place that held extravagant galas aplenty.

"It's beautiful Chat," she said. Then she looked at the piano. It too was dusty, but the mahogany finish intrigued her. She wondered how many people had played piano affectionately.

"It's also in tune," he said, patting the dusty seat he was sitting, motioning for her to join him. She sat tentatively as he motioned to one of the many white keys on the piano, pressing it for good measure. "This is middle C. Now the piano goes from A to G, but a common misconception is that it starts at A. Which is wrong, some _grand_ pianos start at A, but most pianos I've seen start with C. And C is also the only major chord you can play with all white notes, but we'll get to that."

She laughed. "Well where does this start then?"

"At A," he said, stretching his fingers out to two C's. "This is called an octave, which is two C's just an octave apart, if you get that. Now with your hands, you will probably only ever reach an octave, because they're small, just a warning for you now. You can still play amazing music, even if you can only reach an octave, though."

"So this," she said, struggling to fit the distance, "is an octave?"

"Of E, correct."

"So… C," she said, pointing at his leather clad fingers, still on the keys, "is always in that place?"

"Ding, ding, ding, give the girl a cookie!" he said, grinning. "Maybe I'm not a shit teacher after all."

Silence. Marinette paused upon this thought and sat there for a moment. She looked hopefully up at Chat. "Will you teach me?"

Adrien blinked. He did say he wasn't a shit teacher. He could practically hear Plagg screaming at him. Where in the hell would he fit that into his timetable? "I suppose I could," he grinned.

"Thank you Chat!" she exclaimed, jumping up and down in her seat. Her smile made his heart flutter.

"But before we go, I need you to know where all of the keys are," he said, returning his focus back to the piano. He hadn't seen that piano in years. He was sure they would have disposed of it. "So the piano starts at A," he said, thunking the key at the end of the piano. "So the next key along would be -,"

"B?" she said, smiling a little. He nodded, waiting for her to continue. "C, D, E, F, G, A."

He grinned as her fingers glided across the keys naturally, hitting them as she said them. Looking up at him for approval, she did a double take when she saw his face. Chat was smiling his most genuine smile, only shown when he was fully at ease. She gave her best smile back and waited for him to say something. "You're a natural, your fingers are made for the piano," he said, taking her hand softly. "But that is the end of the lesson, so if I may escort the princess home?"

"Can you play me something first?" she asked. He nodded curiously. "This is going to sound cliché, but do you know Fur Elise?"

His lips parted into a smile. "I don't suppose you'd like to learn that?"

"I'd settle for hearing it, if you're as good as I think you are," she whispered, pulling her hand from his and placing his on the piano. He began to play and Marinette watched his fingers grace the keys, gentle, not even a scrape of his claws up against the ivory. She smiled, her head moving to the music unconsciously. The way he played was so entrancing. She could fall asleep to it, the most calming charming playing she'd heard in a while. Her chest felt light, her head suddenly heavy. It was magical. As it came to an end, he looked to her, eager to see her face. "Chat it was beautiful…"

She looked so happy. He'd never realised he could make someone so happy. Trying to distract himself from this thought, he said "But alas, it is over now, and someone looks tired, so I will escort her back to her house."

Pulling her up slowly, he dragged her to the window, and hoisted her up, swinging them from roof to roof until they were safely back on her balcony.

"Thank you, Chat," she whispered as he let her down gently, almost kissing her hand until he remembered she wasn't Ladybug.

"That's ok, Mari," he said softly. "9 next Wednesday?"

She blinked, looking confused for a second. "If you're still serious about teaching me, then yes."

"I am," he said, desperate to get home, out of the sweaty suit that he was suddenly hot under collar in. "I'll bring some of my old books and you can learn to sight read, too."

She nodded, yawning. "Goodnight Chat."

"Night, Mari," he replied, giving her a gentle push towards the hatch to her room. She waved going down, and watched as he disappeared into the night.

As she lay down in bed, she frowned. "Tikki, you don't think I'm getting too close to him, do you?"

"No Marinette, he's your friend you're allowed to be close with him. And what he's offered to do for you is very sweet, straight from his heart, you couldn't turn that down if you tried," she said, flying just above her face.

"He played me Fur Elise, Tikki," she said, "Did you hear it? It was so beautiful, he plays so well."

Tikki smiled and hugged her cheek. "And just think, the first person Chat Noir has played piano for, your own little concert."

"What makes you say that?" Marinette asked curiously.

"I'm not sure, it was just so raw," she said. "It really was beautiful."

"You know who else plays piano, Tikki?" Marinette asked, almost giggling.

"Oh I don't know, maybe a blonde handsome boy that you have a special place in your heart for?" Tikki asked, rolling her eyes. For some reason, Chat's image appeared in her head next to Adrien.

Marinette smiled. "I haven't seen him in ages; maybe I should ask him if he's available tomorrow?"

"Wow, is Marinette in here, or is it someone else?" Tikki said. Marinette grinned sheepishly. "Good on you Marinette, you're getting so good at talking to him now."

"Maybe we should see a movie?" she asked, more to herself than to Tikki.

"Go for it!"

* * *

Once home Adrien rid himself of the suit almost immediately and took a deep breath in, consuming all the air conditioner had to offer him. He hadn't played so well in a while. Especially not for someone else. But Marinette lit a spark in him, confidence beyond measure, like Ladybug. They both made him so sure of himself.

"Bloody hell Adrien, take a cold shower if you're _that_ caught up in your head," Plagg said, making his presence known in the room.

"What do you mean; I'm not caught up in my head," Adrien said, looking at his charge, with somewhat of a gleam in his eye.

"Uh huh, yeah sure, I believe that. Better go find those old piano books of yours, lover boy," Plagg said dryly.

"Lover boy?" Adrien asked, touching his cheek. It was definitely warmer than he'd anticipated.

"Yes lover boy. Listen I'm not gonna sugarcoat it for you, you know you get the same way around her as you do around Ladybug, and I'm guessing that before you went there tonight, you had no idea that you'd be giving out lessons, but you are now, and that's what she wants from you. Get your head in the game, man," Plagg said, reaching for the piece of camembert by the bed when he was done with his speech.

"I do have my head in the game, I know I have to teach her Plagg, but I don't see how you think I get the same way with Marinette as I do with Ladybug," Adrien tried to reason with him.

"I know how you think, I know you almost called her my lady instead of princess," he snickered, eating away at his foul smelling cheese. In a mocking voice Plagg said, " _Marinette Dupain-Cheng, bad at piano my ass_."

Adrien could have snarled. There was no point arguing, Plagg would see his way and his way only. He had a point though. Adrien never intended on going to Marinette's to become her piano teacher, but alas here he was. He got up, looking around his too large room and started at the most reasonable spot. He opened the little compartment in his seat at the piano, and rifled through the books for his first grade book. To his disappointment, it was not there, and so heaving a heavy sigh, he climbed up the stairs to his bookshelves and searched from top to bottom. Normally it would have been organised, the bookshelf, but with him reading so much during the holidays in between shoots it was a little disarrayed. Grunting he sat defeated until Plagg rose next to him, struggling immensely with a thin large book.

"Thanks, Plagg," he grinned, taking the book from him. "I'll get you some more camembert for tea."

"Tell you what, that sounds good to me," he said, also grinning. "Just don't mess up with Marinette; she's a good friend to keep around, ok?"

Adrien frowned, but nodded nonetheless. "You know I wouldn't."

"I'm just saying our luck combined isn't the best sometimes, you better keep an eye out for bad things that might happen." Adrien hadn't thought of that. He could get Marinette caught up in akuma attack if he wasn't careful.

"Maybe it's better if I don't teach her," he said, looking at Plagg, trying to mask the twinge of worry that had crept in.

"She can handle herself, I'm saying maybe you just need to be careful going about it, emotions and stuff in mind," Plagg said.

"She's too smart to be akumatised, Plagg, you've seen how good she is with her emotions," Adrien said, for some reason feeling the need to defend his friend.

"I didn't just say she could handle herself did I?" he asked sarcastically. Adrien had no idea what Plagg was talking about now, and he had half a mind to tell him so until his phone buzzed. Speak of the angel herself. Adrien frowned and hit his cheek. Where on earth did that thought come from?

Marinette: _Hey Adrien, I know you've been busy, but I'm having withdrawals from seeing no one and I was wondering if you're doing anything tomorrow?_

He grinned. He'd been ready to text her something similar when he got home, not fully satiated from seeing her for a short amount of time.

Adrien: _Hey Mari, not doing anything tomorrow, was just about to text u the same thing. What did you have in mind?_

He waited for a response by cleaning up the books he'd left on the floor in order to search for the book he was going to give her. When he heard the signature buzz he ran down the stairs as fast as possible without his suit and jumped onto his bed. Plagg was already at the phone and grinning at him. He didn't say anything but his eyes were mocking and he could practically hear him say 'lover boy'.

Marinette: _I was thinking movies? There's a few good ones coming out, but if you don't want to we could always explore the city_

Adrien: _Both sound good to me… Which movie did u have in mind?_

Marinette: _I was thinking The Greatest Showman; I've been into musicals lately_

He let out a laugh. She'd said something similar to Chat.

Adrien: _I'm down for that, what time?_

Marinette: _12:15, is that alright?_

Adrien: _That's cool, where'd you wanna go for lunch?_

Marinette: _Not fussed, we can figure that tomorrow can't we?_

Adrien: _Sure can, now go to bed or u'll be late for the movie tomorrow_

Marinette: _O: sorry mum!_

Adrien laughed and looked at Plagg, who was shaking his head.

"You're one to lecture aren't you? You're both late for everything!" he laughed.

Rubbing the back of his neck Adrien realised he was right.

Adrien: _I'll pick u up at 11:45, or I'll pull u out of bed if I have to_

He grinned as he waited for a reply, knowing that she wouldn't argue with him. She'd be humble about him picking her up, but would be too nice to turn it down.

Marinette: _Adrien, you don't have to pick me up, I can walk_

Adrien: _I know you can, but I need you to convince my driver to let me go without a bodyguard_

Marinette: _fineeeeee I suppose I'll just have to get up at 11_

He'd won. Not many people had that luxury with her, he'd come to realise as they'd gotten closer. She never let Alya win, or Nino. But something about him must have made it hard to argue and for that he was grateful, for Marinette's determination was as famed as Ladybug. He bid her goodnight and went straight to sleep for fear of not showing up on time.

Sitting awake, Plagg looked out the window as his charge slept, and shook his head. "I can't believe they're that oblivious," he said softly, to himself, hoping it would somehow magically travel to Tikki.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: So I totally forgot to do a disclaimer at the start of Chapter 1, so that's probably the first I'll be adding to the start of this chapter, whoops. I just wanted to thank everyone who has reviewed the first chapter, and a massive thanks to my brand new beta reader leafgreenflower, who has already improved my writing beyond words. I just wanted to put a fore-warning in, I am doing VCE this year which means that most of my time will be dedicated to schoolwork because I'd love to pass Year 11 and my year 12 subject so these chapters may be irregular which I understand is annoying, but it is my own fault. And to anyone who is actually a piano player, I'd really love for you not to be too critical as I've only played for a couple of years myself and I'm not doing exams, therefore haven't really done any theory regarding it. Thanks, Cass.

Disclaimer: I do not own Miraculous Ladybug, but I will forever be grateful to Thomas Astruc for creating it.

* * *

Marinette woke early the next morning, already smiling widely. Tikki was munching down on some cookies when she saw Marinette rise from her bed and after devouring the cookies she smiled.

"Good morning Marinette," she chirped, watching her wander around the room grabbing her clothes.

"Morning Tikki," Marinette responded happily feeling her heart soar. Finally, she'd have someone to talk to. She threw her pajamas onto her bed, pulling on a cute black skirt with small floral decorations. She wouldn't usually wear skirts such as this one for the button at the waist irritated her, but upon seeing it she fell in love with the design and picked up without a second thought. It was perfect for the horrible humidity, enough room for her legs to breathe, as it finished at her mid-thigh. She wasn't a fan of how high it finished, always consciously pulling it down, but she'd put up with it if it meant she wasn't sweating her butt off. She pulled the material through the slit at the waist and tied it together in a cute bow. She paired it with a simple black singlet and slipped on her little ballet slippers, grabbing her handbag. "Better not forget the purse, hey Tikki?"

"Can you pack me some extra cookies for the movie?" Tikki asked, watching take her purse from the dresser.

"Of course, Tikki," Marinette said, taking some from her stash and putting it in the bag. "Maybe I should grab a cardigan for the cinema; it's usually pretty cold in there."

"At least Adrien doesn't have to pull you out of bed," Tikki giggled.

Marinette gasped dramatically and put her hand over her, though her eyes shone with laughter. Secretly she agreed with Tikki, but she set to work taking down the posters of Adrien and making sure his outdated schedule was plastered to the ceiling. "That's not coming down any time soon."

She made her way downstairs and made herself breakfast, her parents already at work in the bakery down below. Perhaps she'd help out for a bit, she thought to herself. Positive they were both down in the bakery; Tikki emerged and stole some of her pancake.

"At least you're not quaking in your boots like the very first time you went to the movies without Alya and Nino," Tikki said.

"It's been a long time since that happened," Marinette reasoned. "Besides I think I can speak proficiently around him now."

"I told you you could," Tikki said mouth full. "Besides, I don't think you like him as much now like that as you did."

Marinette considered this. "Maybe, Tikki. I think it's just because I really like to value our friendship so I wouldn't want to ruin that by doing anything… stupid."

Tikki nodded as Marinette's phone buzzed.

Adrien: _We're coming to get u :P_

Marinette let out a laugh. Showing it to Tikki, she began typing her reply.

Marinette: _Wow, not creepy at all :P_

Adrien: _I mean, I could always go to the movies by myself…_

Marinette: _you wouldn't!_

Adrien: _ur right, never mind, I couldn't_

Marinette grinned at this.

Marinette: _I know :P. Would you like something from the bakery?_

Adrien: _Cookies? :)_

Marinette: _Of course._

She grinned, going downstairs and grabbing some cookies, saying good morning to her parents. They knew she was going out of course; she'd had to clear it with them first. They being the overly excessive shippers of Adrienette, loved that Marinette was going to the movies with Adrien.

There was a ding of the bell and Adrien entered, looking rather relaxed in a pair of blue jeans, his signature orange shoes and a white singlet. Silently, Marinette prayed for herself. It wasn't as if he'd buffed up over the summer, but Marinette was sure she'd only seen shoulders like that on… Chat. And his legs. Biting her lip, she tried not to slap herself right there. Just breathe.

"Good morning, Adrien," she said, trying to contain her grin.

"Good morning, Mari," he said, reaching for the cookies. "Are these my cookies?"

"Yes," she said, exasperatedly, "You're welcome."

He grinned. "I'm just kidding," he said, stashing them in his pocket. "Good morning Tom, Sabine."

"Good morning Adrien, how are you son?" Tom replied, kneading some bread.

"Yeah good, I can't wait to try these cookies," he said, tapping his jeans.

"You might as well have them now," said Sabine, returning to the oven as the customers left with their pies. "Marinette had us make them nice and hot."

"You didn't!" he said, beginning to pull them out of his pocket.

"I can put them back if you want…" Marinette said cheekily, reaching for them.

He almost gasped. He wanted to grab her hand. Snap out of it, Adrien, you're not Chat right now. Her hands were so beautiful, they were made for piano, he decided. He was happy with his decision to teach her now. He gave her a once over, and found the skirt a little too much to handle. He knew immediately she'd picked it because of the material. It was one of those one that you had to button, then tie up, his father had made a few of them in his new line. But it was also one that situated at the waist, and didn't go quite far enough down her leg. Distracting. She didn't like being distracting. That was one of the first things he noticed about her.

"No way!" he exclaimed, making sure he had a good hold on the cookies just in case. "Besides we'd better get going. We've still gotta tell Gorilla that we're walking."

She waved goodbye to her parents, and they left the building, disappointed that the air outside wasn't nearly as nice smelling as the bakery. Marinette lingered behind a little as he explained to Gorilla, or tried to, that they'd be fine just walking to the movies. He just grunted, and watched them walk off before he finally drove away. Adrien could almost guarantee that he'd follow from a distance. He didn't tell Marinette that, though.

"The Greatest Showman?" he asked, wanting to talk about the movie.

"Yeah, I'm sorry if you're not really into musical movies, but I've had a little musical flair at the moment," she said, giggling as if thinking of last night.

"Musical flair?" he asked, looking at her curiously, positive she would bring up something about the piano.

"Yeah I… I always wanted to play an instrument when I was a kid and somebody has been kind enough to offer me some lessons," she said, smiling.

"Oh really, what instrument?" he said grinning.

"Piano," she said, then clapping a hand to her mouth. "You play piano!"

"Correct," he said, grinning, but confused as to where her train of thought was going.

"I could have asked you to teach me," she said. "I'm sorry if you're offended, it's just I only really considered it properly last night."

"It's ok, Mari," he said, smiling barely containing the laugh he had waiting. "I'm not a very good teacher."

"Funny, that's what my teacher said," she muttered. Adrien bit his lip and tried desperately not to burst.

"Who's teaching you, I might know them," he said, waiting for her answer.

"I'm not sure he'd want me to say, you know, just in case," she said, considering her answer carefully.

"Give me a hint," he said. He smiled gently at the thought she had kept it a secret. Their secret. It was to protect his identity, he thought. "Do I know them?"

"Everyone knows him," she said, looking around. "If I tell you, can you promise, and I mean seriously promise not to tell a soul? And especially not Alya, she'll kill me."

He put a hand to his chest. "Agreste's honour," he said.

"Chat Noir," she whispered in his ear. He looked around, and then did a small gasp for effect.

"You're kidding," he said, as they kept walking, watching her face light up.

"Nope," she said, clicking her tongue happily. "He plays so well, too."

"Really?" he asked, grabbing her hand to pull her to a stop at the crossing. "You know you actually have to wait for the light to go green for us to walk?"

"Shut up," she said, punching his arm. "Anyway, he played Fur Elise for me last night and, oh, Adrien! It was just so beautiful. It was stunning. Like he plays way better than I'm making it sound, I just don't really know how to put it into words."

He smiled to himself. She liked his playing. He was now all the more eager for next Wednesday's lesson with her. "I reckon I'm better," he said cockily.

Her mouth dropped open. "Of course, you do," she said, grin still on her face.

"I'm kidding, he's probably better than me," he smiled. "What did he teach you?"

"Just where the keys were, but apparently, he's going to teach me to sight read," she said, a little frown overcoming her face. "What if I can't read it?"

"It's really easy, Mari, trust me, you'll be fine," he said, reassuring her. "Besides, you're only just starting; he's not going to expect perfection."

"But I am," she pouted. They arrived at the cinemas and bought their popcorn, Adrien sneakily getting a second ticket as he lined up first. Her surprise made him laugh, and though she fought to pay him back, he refused blatantly.

"Adrien!" she whined in their seats, still not happy about the tickets. He chuckled and dove a hand into the popcorn. "Seriously, how can I pay you back?"

"I'm not letting you do that, Mari," he said. "Nice try, but it's not happening. Oh, look the movie's starting."

Silence fell over the theatre and the crowd stayed quiet, waiting for the start. The music began and Marinette relaxed into her seat next to him. He stayed quiet watching intently as Marinette gasped at whatever she found astounding throughout the film. Towards the end of the film, Adrien took her hand in his, without a second thought, to comfort her. He could hear her sobbing quietly and tried to find some tissues, but there were none to be found. He quickly wiped away a tear from her cheek, and squeezed her hand. There were movies that made him cry, but he'd learnt not to cry easily. Marinette, on the other hand, was so open with her emotions if the movie was personal, he was sure she'd be akumatised. "It's ok Mari," he whispered, leaning a little closer.

"It's just a movie," she said through sobs, "Why does this always happen to me?"

By the end of the movie, however, she was smiling once more, singing along to the song at the credits, Adrien pulling her out of her seat and dragging her out of the cinema. "It was a good movie, you were right Mari," he said laughing at she hummed 'This Is Me'. "Where are we headed now?"

"Well we can go back to the bakery for lunch, and then we can go explore the city, if you're up for it," she said, shooting a cheeky grin his way.

"Think I can't keep up?"

"I _know_ you can't keep up," she poked out her tongue.

"Ok then," he grinned. "Race you to the bakery."

And they were off. Marinette ran ahead of Adrien quickly, though she felt free, she missed flying over the rooftops, the ease that her yoyo provided her. Following a similar thought pattern, Adrien was missing his stick, jumping with Ladybug, defeating the akumas. But being with Marinette… being with Marinette was so much fun. She skidded around the corner and through the door to the bakery, Adrien grabbing her shoulders to stop her from sliding into the customers standing in front of her.

"Watch out Mari," he exclaimed, steering her away from the lady and child she'd nearly bumped into.

"I'm so sorry," she said, turning to the little girl who was gaping. She was a beautiful little girl, looking surprisingly like Adrien. The eye colour was almost the same.

"Are you Ladybug?" she asked, her little voice echoing through the bakery. Marinette stilled beside him, and he dared to look at her face. She was a little red, and didn't seem to know whether to laugh or to cry. The girl had a point, she did look remarkably like Ladybug, but Adrien couldn't bring himself to believe it. He pushed the thought away. Finally, Marinette let out a laugh and Adrien relaxed a little. He decided to distract from Marinette's embarrassment.

"If she's Ladybug, I'm Chat Noir!" he chuckled, pointing at himself. Mari began to cackle, and shook her head when she finally recovered.

"I'm sorry to disappoint, but I'm certainly not Ladybug," Marinette said bending down to the little girl. "I can get you a lollipop, though."

Adrien stood and watched as she grabbed a lollipop from the counter and knelt down. "There you go," he said, the little girl smiling immediately. Beside him, he saw Marinette flash a small smile of her own. He stood up, pulling Marinette with him and going out the back of the bakery. "Shall we have lunch?"

"Oh yes," Marinette said, running up the stairs to the house. Inside they found Sabine, setting down two plates on the bench. "Thanks mum."

Sitting down at the bench Marinette took the plate to the right, Adrien sitting down next to her, picking up a fork.

"Yeah thanks mum," he laughed, shoving down a forkful of bacon and eggs.

Sabine giggled and ruffled Adrien's hair. In the back of his head, he was still reliving the event from just moments before. He'd never considered Marinette as Ladybug before. And he tried not to imagine it, feeling unfair to both her and him. Pushing his emotions on her like that was unfair, but he couldn't help but consider it for a moment, her freckles just under her mask, her glinting blue eyes and her unwavering kindness. He could make the connection. Looking over his shoulder at the family portrait he smiled softly to himself. There was just something special about this family.

"You're welcome, Adrien," Sabine said, passing them both a glass of water. "Are you both going exploring after lunch?"

"Yeah, I had somewhere in mind," Marinette said, her eyes gleaming mischievously. Adrien was intrigued, but he didn't question it. They finished lunch and Marinette ducked up to her room to 'restock' her bag while Adrien found himself looking at the family photo again. They were so happy together; it was such a stark contrast to his own family. Maybe that's why he found himself more comfortable whenever he was with Marinette; the warmth they exuded was enough to make even his cold home seem warm. A warm gentle hand on his shoulder made him jump.

"You know you can always talk to me, right?" Marinette asked gently. His eyes seemed to water at this.

"I know," he whispered, slightly taken aback, touched. She slid her hand down his shoulder and rested it on his bicep. He looked down and felt a strange pang of emotion in his chest. Without thinking, he grabbed her waist and pulled her in for a hug. Closing his eyes, he rested his cheek on her head smelling her hair. They stayed like that, for as long as he allowed himself, as long as it took to get a grip. Thank god for the piano lessons on Wednesday. Pulling away, he said, "Let's go."

Marinette didn't know what to say, so she pulled him along the footpath, trying to ignore the alarm bells going off in her head. Why did that hug drive her mad? Why did it remind her so much of Chat, the touch, the smell, everything? It killed her to admit, but she knew what was happening. It was only a matter of time before something happened and she couldn't ignore it. She had a teeny tiny crush on Chat. Stopping outside the building Chat had taken her to, she then wondered why it was she was bringing Adrien here. It was meant to be just for her and Chat, their own secret little club. But Adrien had given his word he wouldn't tell a soul, including Alya. "Chat brought me here," she said quietly.

There was a hint of a smirk on his lips that she ignored. "Did he?"

"Yeah. Do you know the building?" she asked.

"It used to be a really big performance theatre, it got shut down when the piano teacher… well piano drama happened," he said.

"Do you know anything else about it?" she asked.

"Can I ask why you want to know?" he said, smirk still showing, but barely.

"Honestly, I'm not sure, I just wanted to know if the building had a history as rich as it's architecture, you know?" she said. "And… I kinda want to know why it's so special to Chat."

"You got that impression from him?" Adrien said, masking his shock with curiosity.

"Yeah, it… he just looked, I dunno, nostalgic, like he was home or something, but I can't quite peg it. I could be completely wrong and he could hate the place, though," she shrugged.

Adrien wanted to tell her, no, she wasn't wrong, but of course that would give him away in a heartbeat. He was once again in awe of the way Marinette succeeded at analysing people's emotions so well. She truly was one of a kind. "Are you a fan of his?" he said, making sure that passers-by did not catch on that they were talking about Chat.

"I'm not really a fan, not as much as Alya, but I suppose I could call him my friend," she said cryptically. His heart soared a little when she called him her friend.

"How so?"

"Well I've always considered Chat for more than everyone else seems to think he's worth, because he… he works so tirelessly to protect people from akumas, and all they do is call him Ladybug's sidekick. And they're a team; sorry if you disagree, but to me the balance of power is there, and he's just… he's so much more important than people put him down for. They're _partners_. Chat puts himself on the line for Ladybug all the time and what people don't realise is that if something happens to her when the akuma attacks, they're done for, because Chat can't… um, restore the akuma or whatever it is, wow I'm rambling," she said. But by then the damage was done. His jaw was completely open and his heart was flooding. He hadn't heard anybody stand up for him like that except Ladybug and Alya. Ladybug… no! Get that thought out of your head, Adrien.

"So you _do_ like him!" Adrien said.

"He's a great guy, and I don't want anything to take that away from him," she said. "I mean, what kind of superhero offers to teach a person like me piano?"

"One who's down to earth and clearly cares about you?" he said, watching her face for a reaction.

A blush. That was not expected. "Look, Mari, I'm not sure quite what you mean about 'person like me' but I can assure you Chat does not think like that. Especially not about you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked incredulously.

"I mean that Chat thinks you're a great person too. You may think he doesn't see you often enough, but everyone knows how kind you are, and how passionate and motivated you are, you might not see it, but I do. And Chat does."

She was speechless. Despite her vocabulary she could not find words. Staring blankly at Adrien, she couldn't find anything to say. He was her friend, yes, but she'd never heard anybody speak her praises so loudly apart from Chat Noir, and half the time he was speaking Ladybug's praises. It reminded her of when her Uncle had come to visit, the same tone he used when he assured that Uncle Cheng did, in fact, like her. "Adrien…"

"Hey, I'm just saying, you're all compliments and smiles, but you don't realise how much of a good person you are yourself," he replied, watching the blush redden. In the back of his head he wondered what she'd say if it was Chat talking. Shaking his head, he grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the building. "I think it's time to go, Mari. I'll leave this place for you and Chat."

A smile of acknowledgement and a small nod accompanied her reply. "Please don't tell anyone, Chat'll be badgered with requests."

"I promise I won't tell a soul," he said grinning to himself. She really was a genuinely good person, something Adrien realised he couldn't find much of these days. And he could think of no one else who would protect the identity of someone they didn't know like Marinette would. "Wouldn't want your secret rendezvous with Chat to be ruined."

"Hey!" she exclaimed. "They are not secret rendezvous, they're lessons."

"Tell me, are you excited for these lessons?" he grinned. This position of power was fun to abuse, he thought. It was only for asking the questions he couldn't as Chat, he reasoned to himself.

"Well yes," she huffed. "But I've never played before, so I can't say I'm not nervous."

"You'll be fine, he's a reasonable guy, Marinette," Adrien said.

"Are you friends with him?" she asked. Not a question Adrien was expecting to get. For a quick moment, he considered his answer.

"Yeah, I know him." Watching his face closely, Marinette considered his hesitation. Did he not like Chat? She wasn't sure what to make of the hesitation. For a fleeting moment, she considered the notion of similarities. Something that allowed Chat and Adrien to both appear in her head, each a comforting thought. He had been speaking his praises, something she attributed to Chat. Shaking her head, she derailed that train of thought. The most likely explanation was that they were friends. As much as she hated to admit it, after downright denying to Alya that he could be Chat, the thought lingered around like a little bug. Telling herself it wasn't possible was easier.

"Where shall we go?" she asked, needing a change of subject.

"I was thinking the Louvre," Adrien said.

"Oooh, I need some inspiration for designs," she said. It was true, she'd needed some inspiration lately, because everything she thought of had something to do with her alter ego and Chat Noir, but if she put stuff like that out it was entirely possible people would put two and two together. And the fact that a small child had already asked her that question this morning put her head in a spin. Thankfully Adrien had distracted away from that.

Her and Adrien sat at the Louvre for a fair amount of their afternoon, until he finally resigned to the fact he had to go home. "Not before I walk you home, of course," he said.

A small blush found its way to her cheek. She fought it down as Adrien guided her past the hordes of people in the street. Trying to ignore the gentle hold he had just above her wrist, she distracted herself by looking around in endless wonderment at the streets of Paris.

Arriving at the bakery Marinette looked at the silver car already parked outside. Ignoring the car, Adrien walked her inside and up to her room, grabbing the bag of stuff he hadn't needed.

"I'll see you at school on Wednesday," he said as he began to leave. Lingering for a moment, Adrien felt the need to do something but he couldn't quite figure out what it was he was supposed to do. Soft fingers touched his arm and he felt Marinette's head against his chest. His heart jumped to his throat as he hugged her back. "I had fun today."

There was a soft murmur of agreement as she pulled away. "So did I."

She waved Adrien off with a strong sense of… was it regret? She still felt bad about not asking him to teach her, but the hug had reminded her so much of Chat Noir it was impossible to stop thinking about it. Why did it remind her of Chat, she asked Tikki when she went back upstairs, the look on Chat's face when she got answered the question right on Wednesday night? It was this that kept her awake for the remainder of the holidays, sitting on her bed at night contemplating why Chat was so easy to be around. It was always easy around him, as Marinette and Ladybug. Chat was the down to earth one out of both of them and she knew it.

As Ladybug, she was strung so tight working in the 'get-the-job-done' frame of mind. In her mind, there was no time for joking when fighting an akuma, but secretly she craved the puns and jokes Chat made whenever she used her lucky charm. It was like a sign that he knew they were going to be fine. She was ten times more confident around Chat Noir; it was the self-assurance Chat wore like a shirt, the cheeky grins in the face of danger. And God knew there been some close calls. When Mr. Damocles was akumatised it was all she could do not to break down and cry. It was Chat's steadfast belief in her that they'd be fine that her plan succeeded, she was convinced of this.

She wondered if he toned it down as a civilian, knowing the tender side of him was there. She wanted to know.


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed, it's touching for me to read the comments every time I update, even though it isn't frequent. I do apologise for that, but unfortunately, I was the idiot who started a new story before starting year 11... Anyway, I would like to update every two weeks or so, because Friday nights are my nights off homework, so I'll try to get sorted. Thank you to my amazing beta-reader leafgreenflower who has improved my writing so fantastically. As always Miraculous is not my brainchild, no matter how much I wish it was, so read on and tell me what you think :)

* * *

Waking up on Wednesday was torturous for Adrien. He'd been antsy since Thursday last week, the last time he'd seen Marinette – craving her presence. Even Ladybug noticed on Patrol on Saturday. He'd tried to fix the attitude for Monday, knowing he'd have patrol once more, when Ladybug finally asked him 'what the hell' was wrong. He told her he couldn't do patrol on Wednesday, having taken up teaching piano lessons. She'd gone red, in fact, she'd almost choked.

"Ladybug?" he'd said tentatively. She didn't look mad.

"I'd never have pegged for you a piano player, Chat," she said swiftly. "Surely you can make it somehow?"

"Alas, she will be waiting for Chat Noir, not my civilian identity," he said, not quite understanding why she was smiling.

"You can still make it," she scoffed then seemed to think the better of it, shaking her head. "Or you could do a check over before you go?"

Now that was a better idea, he thought. "Are you sure you're ok with doing patrol by yourself?"

"I'll be fine, Chaton, you know I can handle myself," she said. "Just do the city a once-over before you go ok?"

Getting up, he nodded. There was nothing more to say, nowhere to check, for tonight at least. He was restless, still. He wanted to see Marinette now, but dropping in unexpectedly was not fair on her, not at this time of night. "I'll head home, I need to get some homework done before school goes back," he said, bowing and kissing her knuckles. There was a nod on her behalf and she, too, stood.

"Homework does suck," she agreed. He hummed in agreement and waved, taking off before she could say any more.

So that morning, after arriving home Monday, having done precisely 2.43 minutes of homework – Plagg timed him - Adrien was more than excited about seeing his friends. In fact, it was all he could do not to force a hug upon Alya, Nino and, of course, Marinette. Six days without seeing her was too many, he thought. But more than that, he was itching to play the piano tonight. To just be with her alone, where there was no judgement, just her. Her kindness, her smile, her eyes. And with this in mind, he passed the day trying to distract himself from being distracted about Marinette. It didn't feel like betrayal; Ladybug was his friend, she'd made that entirely clear when he'd set up the little balcony when Andre was akumatised. Upon fully waking up in the last class of the day Nino just looked at him curiously, though not questioning the motive behind Adrien's madness. Irritated that Marinette was not sitting in front of him, he looked back, perhaps more frequently than he should have. The bell rang as he let out another sigh. Before he knew it, however, Chloe was on him with fingernails so sharp they could rival his claws as Chat Noir.

"Adrikins! How were your holidays?" she shrieked.

"Good Chloe, how were yours?" he deadpanned, desperately pulling her off of him.

"Good, are you free tonight?" she asked, still standing a little too close for comfort. He bit his lip, pulling a face he was sure would deter her but she continued to haggle him. "Cos, I was thinking that maybe you could -,"

"I'm still coming back to yours aren't I, Adrien?" Marinette's angel-like voice called from behind him. It took everything in his power not to sigh with relief. "Unless you don't wanna teach me tonight?"

She winked at him, and tapped her fingers on the desk, much like she had the piano keys when with Chat. Raising an eyebrow, he looked at her curiously. Her face said 'just go with it'. So, he did. "Oh yeah, have you got your books?"

"No, I haven't had time to buy them yet," she said, putting on a worried face.

"It's ok you can use mine," he said, thankful for her save. He'd have to thank her later. He had a piece he was working on anyway, one that he thought she might like.

"Shall we go then?" she said, bouncing down the stairs and grabbing his arm.

"Of course," he said, adding as an afterthought, "Sorry Chloe."

He walked her down the steps of the school, and round to the bakery, coming inside and standing at the door. "Thanks for the save."

"It's ok, I could see you sweating a little, and I thought, it's not exactly a lie if I say I've got piano lessons tonight," she said.

Realising she was still clinging to his arm, Adrien looked around the bakery for a distraction. He saw Chloe still outside the school, waiting with Sabrina, and shrunk into himself. If Chloe saw him now, he'd have no issues with that. He noticed he didn't want Marinette to stop holding his arm once she finally let go, standing awkwardly in her place. "Do you want to come upstairs or just wait here until she's gone?" she asked, twiddling her thumbs.

"Well…" he considered it for a moment. "Maybe you could come over to mine, if you wanted to do some homework."

She considered it, her face scrunching. "Will your dad let me?"

Something he hadn't considered. "I won't ask him, then he'll have no choice but to let you stay," Adrien said. She nodded shyly, picking her bag back up from the counter and informing Sabine and Tom. The more he thought about it, however, the more unease Adrien felt the closer they got to home. What if his father just downright refused to let Marinette come in? He was beginning to feel nauseous when they arrived at the grandeur of the gates leading to his too large home. "Mari, look…"

She tilted her head in his direction curiously and waited for him to talk.

"I really have no idea what he's going to say, so I'm really sorry if he completely dismisses you, but we'll find another place to go, I promise," he said, rubbing his neck, feeling extremely guilty. Blinking, she pulled her stunned face.

"Adrien it's ok, I can take it, I've dealt with Chloe for more years than I can count," she said.

"But you've never met my dad," he muttered, buzzing the intercom and waiting for the gate to open.

"I'll be fine," she said, giving him a warm smile.

"Welcome to my home," he said in a mocking tone, pushing open the large front door and watching her take in the surroundings.

She wanted to gasp as she stepped inside, but sound did not fall from her mouth. She'd seen it before, a few times, all – she noted – during akuma attacks, therefore never having the pleasure of taking in the beauty of it. The first storey went straight up to the second, two doors on either side of the lobby probably leading to areas such as dining and lounge. The tiles laid on the ground were all quartz, and she was certain they were real, for who'd make such a grand house without the grand price tag? Black marble ran up the walls and followed the bleak theme of black and white. The only colour in the room came from two pot plants behind her, featuring red ferns, and a brilliant painting, rimmed with an intricate golden frame. It was a spectacular looking room, but the magnificence masked a darker part to the house. It was dressed up, extravagant in every sense of the word, yet lacked the homely feel she knew from her own home. No wonder Adrien was so lonely. Even the house screamed 'I'm just for show!' Sure, there was light, but it came from outside and the expensive lights from above - nothing that was authentic.

"Adrien, who's this?" the assistant asked formally, face devoid of emotion.

"This is Marinette, I was wondering if she could stay to do some homework?" he asked, a worried look taking over his face.

She seemed to consider, almost a twitch of a smile appearing on her face for a fraction of a second, then nodded. "Yes, of course. Your father won't be home for dinner, he's preparing for his new line at the office tonight," she said, reaching out her hand to Marinette. "I'm Nathalie, nice to meet you."

Marinette glanced to Adrien, who was clearly shocked. Taking Nathalie's hand, she was a little bewildered. "Marinette," she said, even though Adrien had just announced her name.

"We'll head up, we've got a fair bit to do, Nathalie," Adrien said, edging towards the stairs with his bag slung over one shoulder. "Lemme take that for you Mari."

Begrudgingly she handed him her bag, but blushed as he made his way up the stairs in front of her, each bag now over a shoulder each. Reaching his room, he threw his own bag onto his bed, whilst he put Marinette's down gently onto his couch. She took in his room, a million times brighter than the lobby, but still immaculate. She secretly wondered if he felt more at home at school. It hurt her heart to see him sigh looking around the place.

"I'm sorry about Nathalie," he began, "That's the first remotely human interaction I've ever seen her make. I'm not quite sure she knows how."

"It's fine," Marinette said, eyeing the piano in the centre of the room. Gingerly stepping towards it, she ran a hand along the smooth edge.

"Do you want me to open it?" he asked, watching her carefully. He knew he couldn't play in front of her as Adrien now, at least not Fur Elise, but something in him was clawing to play. Her reaction to his performance last time was fulfilling, it gave him something he hadn't felt in a long time, adoration of his playing warmed his heart, and made him forget about the loss of his mother. He knew she was perceptive, however, just enough so that simple movements could give his identity away.

"Could you?" she asked quietly, waiting, watching in awe of the gigantic instrument with indescribable beauty. It seemed like a torturous task, she thought, as he opened up the top of the grand, but she couldn't help but feel happier upon seeing it. It wasn't nearly as pretty as the one in the abandoned theatre that Chat had showed her, but its power was just the same. She found herself wishing Chat was here, that he could play for her and wondered if he would play for her again tonight. She'd have to wait until nine o'clock, but she found time went faster with Adrien. Unsure of what to say, she found herself looking at the piano again. It was just so beautiful, but she selfishly wanted to keep piano between her and Chat Noir.

"It's ok if you just want to look at it," he said, knowing exactly what she was thinking. She couldn't fault him for his ability to read her. Except for him not being able to understand why she stuttered years ago.

"I'm sorry Adrien," she said quietly, "I just… I'm not sure why, but I really think it's something special with Chat."

He smiled softly, grabbing her hand and putting it on the keys. "I get it," he said, voice soft, giving meaning to every word. He wasn't mad. "What homework have you got?"

She thought about it, listing off her tasks one by one on her fingers. Most classes only had one task, but French demanded she finish 3 different analyses all before Friday. "I really don't want to do it, but I know I should. It's just a matter of what I can get done quickest and what's due beforehand."

"Well, let's work on the chapter 4 revision of Chem together, because I know you're pretty good at that, and we'll go from there?" he said, watching her face go pink at his compliment.

"What makes you think I'm good at Chem?" she asked, nervously fiddling with the sleeve of her jumper.

"Well… you're finished before everyone in class, you actually answer questions in Chem and you seem to know the answer when everyone asks you for help, so I'd say you're pretty good at it," he exclaimed, watching her face go darker.

"Well you're not terrible at it either!" she retorted, watching him for reaction.

"I'm not a know-it-all!" he said, sticking his tongue out, eyes gleaming cheekily. Her eyes widened but she found nothing to defend herself with.

"Well at least I'm not gonna fail," she said, having resigned from the fight. "You're lucky you're funny, or I would be kicking your ass."

Clasping a hand to his chest dramatically, he pretended to fall. "You wound me!"

"I would, if we weren't in your super expensive, super exclusive house."

"Mari, you wouldn't be able to kick my butt if you tried," he said, beginning to laugh. "Do you know what you're up against?" In the back of his head, Adrien imagined Marinette trying to fight him as Chat, not akumatised, just fighting. He wasn't sure if he wanted to imagine Marinette akumatised. Pushing the thought aside he waited for her reply.

"You're nothing I can't handle," she said, crossing her arms across her chest. He wanted to scoff at her, but the sincerity on her face, combined with the self-assurance made his jaw drop. He'd never seen something like that on her face before. "But chemistry… we might have to start that or I'll be here all night!"

"You're welcome to stay," he said suavely, bowing deeply, trying not to grin.

"I would but I have a piano lesson with a mangy fleabag at nine o'clock," she said, emphasizing mangy as affectionately as anyone could without sounding like an idiot.

"I suppose you'd better go to that," he said, unreasonably warmed by her tone. Shaking his head, he pulled out his workbook and pencil case, starting on the chapter questions. Marinette followed suit and soon they were competing as to who could finish the questions first.

"Calcium Nitride for b?" she asked, laying her cheek against her book, which was flat on his bed.

"Hold on a sec," he muttered, still writing out the equation. "Yep. Did you get Cobalt (II) Fluoride for a?"

"Yeah," she said, drawing tick in green pen next to her answers. "Food break?"

"Might as well, since we're finished Chem," he shrugged, standing up. "Do you want to go out and grab something, or stay here and ask the chef for food?"

"Oh… I don't want to be an inconvenience for the chef," she said, fiddling with her fingernails. "I'm ok with going for a walk as well."

"A walk to the bakery it is!" he exclaimed pulling her bag together and swinging it around his shoulder.

"Are you trying to get rid of me?" she said, grinning at him.

"No," he said quickly, making sure that was not what he intended. "I… I don't like being cooped up in this house for too long, plus I love the macarons at the bakery, so I thought you wouldn't mind."

"Fair enough. Do you want to bring your books too, or are you done studying?"

"I thought we could play some Mecha Strike instead…" he said abashedly, absentmindedly playing with the straps on her bag.

A smile lit up her face, and happily skipped to the door. "That sounds better than homework to me."

Saying he'd be back before dinner, he bid Nathalie adieu and made sure to leave quickly before Gorilla could wake up from his afternoon nap.

"Are you sure you don't want me to take my bag?" Marinette asked for the fourth time, walking by his side on the quiet street.

"Positive," he said, barely resisting the urge to spew cat puns from his mouth. "It would not be gentlemanly of me."

"How very chivalrous of you," she said. "Unfortunately, the bakery is just there, so I think I can take my bag back now."

"Not a chance," he said, hands going to the straps on his shoulders. "It's too heavy for you."

"I can haul a five-kilo sack of flour, I'll be fine," she said, reaching for the bag. He shrugged away from her and continued walking, paces larger, in front of her. "Ladies first."

Pushing the door open for her, Adrien smiled as the smell of the bakery hit him again. It was impossible not to feel at home here, he thought as he carried Marinette's bag up the stairs, he couldn't stay too long, though, he still had piano lessons as Chat.

He watched Marinette push open her hatch and grin at him as she raced to set up the controller at her desktop. Pulling an extra chair over to the desk and sitting comfortably in her own. He dumped her bag on the chaise, as he sat down on the chair next to her. He watched as the game started up as Marinette twisted the beads on the bracelet he'd made her.

"Do you still wear that?" he asked incredulously, as she turned to look at him.

"Of course, I do! It's one of my favourite presents," she said, blushing lightly.

"Is it?" he asked, putting his hand into his pocket, where he'd kept his own bracelet safe. "I keep mine in my pocket, it's a little too small for my wrist now."

She smiled. "Maybe I could find a bigger string…"

"After we have a couple of rounds of Mecha Strike first," he said, grinning. "Hopefully I'll kick your butt this time."

Needless to say, Adrien was wrong, and Marinette defeated him deftly, requiring numerous rounds before he could finally win. His phone buzzed during their twenty third try, and he paused the game, oblivious to Marinette's little whine. His heart sank a little as he saw the message from Nathalie requesting him home. I'll see her soon enough, he thought.

"Gotta go, Nathalie wants me home," he said, waiting for her to stand up. "But thanks for putting up with me again."

"You know I like having you round," she said, giving his arm a small punch. "But I do have piano lessons and I wasn't expecting you to be around till nine."

"I know," he said. "Have fun with your stray."

A splutter fell uncontrollably from her mouth as she registered what he had said. ' _Your_ stray'. She felt like dying on the spot. Not because of the embarrassment, she could handle that just fine, but because it was true. And she felt a little possessive. Although he didn't know she was Ladybug, she felt compelled to believe that Chat belonged to her just a little. "He's not _my_ stray!"

"Sure… I'll believe it when I see it," Adrien said, grinning as he dodged her slap and cackling down the stairs.

"I don't have anything to prove to you," she said poking her tongue out as she ushered him out the door, hoping her parents couldn't hear from the bakery.

"Keep dreaming," he said, grinning until he couldn't walk backwards anymore. "See you tomorrow Mari!"

"See you tomorrow Adrien!" she shouted as he walked away.

She was left with a sense of satisfaction, but now the nerves for her first proper piano lesson were upon her. Honestly, she couldn't wait to see Chat again, but she would wait patiently until he was tapping on her window. As patiently as she could without fidgeting. The more time she spent alone in her room the more her brain hurt, the ever-constant pile of homework awaiting her, but the lesson with Chat approaching. Since when did she become so dependent on someone's attention?

"Marinette, dinner!" Sabine finally called after what felt like forever, giving Marinette an excuse to shut off her laptop and finally do something productive.

Walking down the stairs, she stared off at the wall during dinner, letting her parents run the conversation whilst she replied absentmindedly.

"Mari are you ok?" Tom finally asked when she couldn't help but stare out the window once more.

Marinette snapped her eyes away quickly and blinked, nodding slowly. "It's just the workload of school," she said, feeling her heart sink a little. It wasn't like it was a lie, it was just that she couldn't imagine her parents believing her if she told them she was doing piano with Chat Noir.

"Just keep at it, sweetheart, that's all you can do," Tom said, ruffling her hair, which was free from its ties.

"I will," she said as she shoved a last forkful into her mouth, placing her plate in the sink. "Can I go finish it now or do you want me to help with the dishes?"

"Go finish your homework," Sabine said, pushing her aside as she began to clean.

There it was again, Marinette thought, that feeling of guilt. She honestly just couldn't wait for her parents to go to bed, then at least she knew Chat would only be an hour off. But it was still too much time alone.

By the time eight thirty had rocked around, Marinette had grown increasingly antsy, just looking for an excuse to send Chat over to her house via Ladybug. A sudden rap at her window dragged her out of her reverie, and, startled, she opened the window. Chat Noir dropped down and grinned, then frowned upon seeing her face. There were numerous books in his hands, all with different piano grades written on the front.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I think I actually missed you a bit," she said, taking both herself and Chat by surprise. "I…"

"I missed you too," he said, knowing what she meant. Her presence was infectious. Clearly, he had the same effect on her. "Are your parents in bed?"

"Yes," she said. "Do you want to go early, cos I'd love to get out of the house."

"Sure," he said, climbing back out of the window he'd just come through and took her hand. "Wanna sit on a rooftop for a bit?"

"Yeah," she breathed as he whisked her up and jumped from rooftop to rooftop. Finally settling on one just across the road from the abandoned piano concert hall, he sat down next to her, legs dangling between the railings on the roof.

They didn't say much, just enjoyed each other's presence while they were there, minimal wind on another humid night. Adrien found himself wanting to say something to her about telling Adrien about Chat, but couldn't bring himself to disturb the silence. Marinette was also considering this, but found as she sat too close to Chat she didn't want to ruin the moment. They were close as two people could be without any other attachments. Her phone buzzed signaling nine o'clock. Silently he stood beside her and held his hand out, waiting.

Setting her down in the piano hall gently she realised the melancholy air to the room. It was beautiful, yes, but something terrible had happened in this room that she couldn't figure out. She wondered if Chat's civilian identity knew what happened. If he had been involved. He began the lesson by playing a beautiful yet simple piece she felt she had heard before. She wanted to learn the name, but something clogged her throat when he finished playing, a haze that had enveloped her during his performance.

"Ok so, I've never taught before, but I remember the first thing I learnt, apart from what I taught you last week was the C major scale and G major scales."

"Ok…" she said nervously.

"I'll write the finger patterns out for you, but since you know where the keys are it shouldn't too difficult," he said, considering this thoroughly. A little smile sprang to her face. "And I'll teach you sight reading, too. So, since you don't need a piano to sight read, I'll give you this sheet I printed out at home, and I want you to learn the names of the notes inside the lines and on the lines of the stave."

"The stave?"

"These blocks here," he said, pointing to the lines on the paper and the clefs at the start of the page.

"For just the treble clef?" she asked.

He blinked. She'd already done some homework. "Bass clef too," he said, smiling gently. "You know which hands which clefs are for right?"

"Bass for left, treble for right," she said, almost like reciting it.

"And I'll give you some pages on the types of notes, too," he said, nodding to himself. "Since you've already done some homework."

For the rest of the lesson she worked on the two scales he'd given her, beginning with one octave, then when Chat had decided she was proficient, began two octaves. He sat silently as she practiced over and over again, watching her mistakes carefully. There weren't many. Even Marinette knew she was doing exceedingly well for one lesson and figured she'd progress quickly with Chat's help. Turning to him when she knew she'd nailed it, she looked expectantly at him.

"Do you want me to give you a piece from one of these books?" he said, holding up the array of books he'd brought with him. There were a few different numbers on the front covers and she nodded slowly, hoping he would find something she'd be able to play without freaking out. "I think we'll start with this one, considering you pick up things quickly and we'll go from there."

"Sure," she said."

"I'll play you a couple out of the book and whichever one you like the most you can play," he said, nodding as he did so, "Some of them are pretty tacky, so I won't make you play them all, because I've been through that."

She giggled a little and tried to imagine Chat being mad at having to play something to his distaste. Catching his eye, she blushed a little and tried to push the thought aside. Placing the purple book on the stand he flicked a couple of pages to where he found a piece that, in Marinette's eyes looked complicated.

Turning to the piano he said, "Don't psych yourself out, it's just triplet notes, and I'll teach you slowly, it'll be fine," as if he was reading her thoughts. Was she _that_ easy to read? It started quickly and Marinette tried to keep focused on the playing. It was beautiful, fast paced, lively, bringing light to the darkly lit room. It was quick, she knew that, but the time signature was only 4/4, plus she was safe in Chat's well practiced hands. She watched his fingers on the keys, starting from E with a louder accent, the room echoing with the sound of the pedal. And just as quickly as it began, it was over, a sudden loud accent on what she thought was A but she wasn't quite sure as his broad shoulders blocked her view.

"What do you think?" he said, eyes lighting up in hope.

"I really like that one," she confirmed, but her shoulders fell a little at all the notes on the page. "Chat, there's a lot of notes on the page."

"I did say that you don't need a piano to sight read," he said, "But it does make it easier to read as you learn the piece, that way you can correct anything you get wrong and it makes you quicker at reading it, too."

"Ok… I trust you," she said, still fidgeting a little. "I'll get it eventually right?"

"Yeah, it's pretty straight forward, but you won't get another chance tonight, unfortunately as it's nine forty-five now, and a princess needs her sleep," he said.

Pursing her lips, she said nothing. Turning her head as he rested a hand on her shoulder she tried to keep the grin from reaching her face. Fingers tapped on her shoulder as she continued to ignore him, a strange tingling where he touched her.

Adrien waited for her to turn around, knowing there would be a ghost of, or remnants of, a smile on her face. When she finally turned around, he was shocked at the sincerity that was there, just a tug at the corner of her lips.

"I really appreciate you teaching me Chat," she said. "And I think you deserve to know you're a good guy."

"Well I'm not a bad guy," he whispered with all the humour he could muster, despite it coming out more honest than he wanted. There was that smile. The one that made him warm from the inside out. Instead of thinking, Chat reached out and held her in a hug, soft enough so as not to break that beautiful light she had, and for her to move away if she wanted. Burying his face in her hair, he tried not to take breaths too deep, fearing a repeat of the 'animan incident'. They didn't speak about it, but Ladybug still remembered Chat Noir smelling her in the bakery, yet he couldn't help but feel unapologetic. Reaching for Marinette's hand gently, whisking her home he couldn't help but feel a sense of belonging. When he kissed her on the forehead goodnight, neither said anything, but recognised the new extent to their previously non-existent relationship. Trust in the purest form, almost as much as Ladybug.

Opening the book up to the page Chat had bookmarked for her, she tried to read the piece, but instead found herself focusing on the annotations written in grey lead, finger patterns and a little smiley face at the end of the page. Flicking to the front she saw a streak of black, Chat's civilian identity crossed out, a little sorry written beside it. In his neat, tiny scribble he'd written above his blacked-out name 'for Marinette'. Beside it was little smiley face again, but she liked his writing more.

 _'_ _For Marinette'._

* * *

 _AN PS:_ I apologise, once more, for anyone who plays piano as this is how I learnt to play, and I'm not a teacher, nor a professional as I have only played for 2 years. I can leave a link to the song that Marinette describes because I have played it myself, but that's only if people wanna hear it.


	4. Chapter 4

Marinette kept the book beside her that night just for that extra warmth, until Tikki alerted her that Chat was calling. Immediately she was awake, hissing out 'spots on' faster than the speed of light.

"Chat," she whispered, standing on her balcony squinting at her screen. "Chat are you there?"

"Yes, I'm here," he said, bright eyes glowing almost brighter than her screen. "I was just on my way home from the lesson and I think there's a kid down here with a bit of a situation. It looks they could turn into an akuma if anything else happens, and I'm not the smoothest talker, so if you could…"

She wanted to snicker, but the sincerity in his voice crushed her. He really thought he couldn't talk to people. "Chat if you really want me there, I'll come."

"I just think they'll relate better to you," he said, fidgeting a little.

And with a simple nod she flung herself to the next building, quitting the call. When she arrived upon the scene she was surprised to see a small child there, and felt a small bit of anger bubble at Chat. Pulling him aside gently, as not to scare the kid, she hissed at him. "Why would you call me when you know you're better with kids, Chat Noir?" she asked incredulously.

"I'm sorry I just… I thought I might need your help," he said, "I can talk to them alright, but the words don't always come out right, and I thought who do I know that's articulate? But Marinette was asleep, so I had to call you." There was a hint of a grin on his face. Marinette bit her lip to stop herself from laughing. Oh, the coincidences.

"Ok, ok," she chuckled, crouching down beside the boy. "Hi little guy…"

He looked up from where he'd had his head buried in between his knees. "Ladybug?" he whispered, barely believing it. She nodded. "Chat Noir?" He nodded also.

"You ok, little bud?" Chat asked, sitting beside him. He shook his head.

"What's your name?" Marinette asked gently, waiting for a reply.

"Sam," he whispered, voice raising just a little.

"Hi Sam," Marinette whispered back, smiling softly. "Can I ask why you're outside this late at night?"

"I wanted to go outside, but my parents wouldn't let me," he sniffled. "I just wanted to see if… I wanted to see if you two were outside." His bottom lip stuck out, the tear tracks on his face barely visible. It seemed ridiculous, Chat could have handled it on his own, but she was sure he had his reasons.

"How about we take you inside, and put you back to bed?" she whispered. "And you never know, you might just see us on the rooftops tomorrow night."

"You would come see me?" he asked. The naivety was almost too much for her to handle. He reminded her vaguely of Manon.

"Of course," she said, holding her hand out for him to take. "Chat Noir will come with me, too."

Slowly, he took her hand and put his little arms around her neck as she asked him where his room was. Chat stood close by, watching with a glazed expression over his face, one that she couldn't quite decipher. Placing Sam in his bed, she whispered goodnight and made a hundred promises of 'we'll be back'.

When crouched on the rooftops, ready to go their separate ways, she looked back at Chat. "Why'd you call me, really?"

"I just wanted to apologise for bailing on Wednesday patrols, it just…"

"Chat it's ok," she said firmly. A guilty feeling washed over as she emphasised the 'ok' far more than she should have. "I… we've got other days that we hang out. Look Chat it's fine, seriously, I miss you too."

"I…" but she was gone. Adrien was speechless. He missed her company as soon as she was gone, but felt slightly better about it now that he knew she missed him too. He had no idea what had compelled her to tell him this, but her trust was so important to him he dared not ask. Once again, he found himself missing the company of people, but was desperate not to return home tonight. Shaking his head, Adrien resigned himself to the fact that he'd outstayed his welcome in the streets, and couldn't possibly return to Marinette's balcony this late. He flung himself on his bed when he finally arrived home, and Plagg hovered over his shoulder, as if waiting for something.

"There should be camembert on the coffee table, Plagg, if that's what you're after," Adrien mumbled into his pillow.

"No," Plagg said, still hovering by his side. "I think you need to talk, but you obviously can't talk about this to anyone else… so unless you want to wallow in pain by yourself…"

"How did you know?"

"You're getting closer to Marinette, and she embodies everything you're attracted to in women, so it was bound to happen sooner or later," Plagg shrugged his tiny shoulders in mid-air. On Adrien's face, Plagg could've sworn there was a sliver of a smile.

"What makes you say that?"

"Follow me, ok, cos I'm only going to say this once. Marinette is incredibly intelligent, but when criticised she begins to doubt herself until someone she trusts brings her up, not that she needs the validation. You like people who give their opinion honestly and stand by that, which is something Marinette also does, as well as standing up for people who sometimes can't stand up for themselves. She is literally the stock standard of your crushes, not to mention the physical aspects."

"I just… what do I do Plagg?" he said, though the tone that came from his mouth was more distressed.

"First you calm down, because it's not like she's killing you," he said. Adrien groaned as if this was the case. "Listen I need you to talk to me, because I can't have a one-sided conversation about your life."

"I… what do you want me to say. I thought I liked Ladybug. And I did Plagg, but Marinette is more real."

"Are you sure it's not a matter of obtainability?"

"NO!" Adrien shot up, almost furious.

"Just asking, I figured I'd know the answer, but sometimes we kwami don't have our charges figured out," he said. "So, what is it because I'm not a mind reader."

"She's just amazing," he whispered, eyes lighting up.

"You've said that about Ladybug, too though."

"Marinette is just… she's so caring Plagg. And I haven't had that since my mum left…"

"Ok, well what are the disadvantages of dating her?"

"Do you really think I'll get that far?"

"Adrien," Plagg warned.

"Well… so far I feel like she prefers Chat over me, but I don't know what to do about that," he said.

"That's easily fixable," Plagg said. "I meant more like the fact that she doesn't know about your identity."

"Well I'd have to tell Ladybug if Marinette found out," Adrien muttered.

"Oh, that's not a problem, it's the fact you'd be putting her at risk, and vice versa. Are you willing to do that?"

"I've gotta get to know her better first, Plagg," he said, rolling his eyes.

"I think you doubt how much you know her, but go for it kid," Plagg said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Adrien asked skeptically.

"Unfortunately, that's something you'll have to figure out for yourself," he said, whizzing off to find his cheese and a corner to devour it in.

Frowning, Adrien lay back down slowly and began to mull these thoughts over. Plagg was right, he did know Marinette better than he thought he did, but this sudden flush of emotions had his mind in spirals. He would be stupid to ruin the friendship, especially at the risk of giving away his identity, but every night he spent with her he found himself more and more willing to do just that. Sure, he'd only done a couple of lessons with her, but it wasn't that simple. Chat was bound to be close to the students he went to school with and this relationship strengthened after it became obvious Chloe would be one of the main threats to Ladybug and Chat Noir. Not in an impending doom sense, but rather someone who would bring the doom closer absentmindedly. She wasn't his problem at the moment, however, Marinette was. Every interaction festered itself in his mind and began to create false impressions of 'she likes me' or 'this is mutual' and Adrien had no idea how to deal with it. Probably, because he hadn't had to deal with it, being so sheltered during his life. And that, he concluded, was the only thing he'd thank his father for at this point, despite his inability to deal with this kind of situation. This can't reach anyone's ears, not Ladybug, Adrien thought, and made a mental note to tell Plagg that when he awoke from his cheese coma.

Tired of his thoughts, Adrien stood and peeled his clothes from himself, ready for a refreshing shower before bed. Passing the piano on his way out of the bathroom, he rummaged in his desk for a piece of paper, quickly writing down the names of some pieces he thought Marinette would like, ones that he'd have liked to learn, too. Pulling the covers back, he wondered briefly what it would be like to be under Marinette's covers, just lying next to her, sleeping softly. Shaking his head ever so gently he pulled his hair away from his eyes and put his head on his pillow, feeling the pull of sleep.

* * *

Thinking of the events that had transpired earlier, Marinette felt a headache coming on. She had to face facts, she missed Chat in her life. Somewhere she wondered if Hawkmoth was out of town, or just couldn't be bothered finding akuma victims, but she was suffering greatly from whatever he was doing. The chance meeting on the balcony was a godsend, and the more she thought about it, it consumed her. When she looked out the window, the haze that was in the sky reminded her vaguely of her own brain, and Tikki floated down to hug her cheek.

"Have you admitted it to yourself yet?" she asked quietly.

"I'm not sure," Marinette replied. "I don't know if I want to."

"Why not?"

"It's risky, and it… Tikki I couldn't make him take off his mask for me if I'm not willing to do the same."

"Are you willing to do the same?" Tikki asked.

Slowly, Marinette nodded. She felt a tear slide down her cheek. "That's what I'm scared of."

"Why, what's the worst Chat's going to do? You already know he loves Ladybug," Tikki said.

"What if he stops once he realises it's me, though?" she whimpered.

"I don't usually tell my miraculous holders this, but I… I've never had a holder I've connected so well with and I really want to see you happy Marinette, so I will," Tikki said, "Chat won't abandon you when he sees you."

"Can you promise that?"

"You know I won't promise, but I am very certain that he will stay," Tikki said, watching Marinette's face.

"Ok," she said, face slightly scrunched up. "I'm going to sleep before this headache gets worse."

"Ok Mari," Tikki muttered from her own bed.

Waking up the next morning, all Marinette could remember from the night before was the feeling of Chat's soft lips on her forehead, the spread of a soft pink blush on her cheeks which she tried to hide. There was no denying she was getting herself into something for which she had no way of escaping. Shoving all of this aside, she got up, turning her alarm off and jumping in the shower quickly for a refresher before school. Padding downstairs, she was shocked to hear Adrien's voice so early in the morning and did a double take as she walked into her lounge. There was no mistaking the blonde hair and green eyes sat on the pink couch, grinning as she walked into the room.

"Good morning," he said, grabbing his cup of orange juice off the coffee table.

"What on earth are you doing here so early, Adrien?" she asked, sitting down at the kitchen bench.

"Needed to get out of the house, and wanted your help with chem before class today," he shrugged. It was a lie, even Marinette could see that, but she was thankful for the company, something to take her mind off of Chat. "You ok?"

"Do you wanna take breakfast for a walk?" she asked, picking up her croissant, and looking at her mother for permission. Silently, Sabine nodded and she made for the door as quickly as possible, desperate for fresh air. Following behind, Adrien raised his eyebrow at her but didn't question it.

"Adrien this is gonna sound weird…" she began, waiting for his curious nod. "It's Chat."

He stopped. "Why what did he do?"

She bit her lip. Maybe she shouldn't have said anything. But he was waiting quietly now, though stiff beside her. "It's… I just… Chat kissed me!" she said.

If she thought his face unreadable before, this trumped it. "I don't think this is a 'walking-talking' kind of topic, let's go to a café," he said, grabbing her hand and taking her to the nearest place. Settling into the seat across from her, he raised his eyebrow again. "Well, how was it?"

Rolling her eyes, she sensed the humour Adrien saw in this. "He didn't kiss my lips, you idiot!"

Grinning somewhat smugly, he prompted her to continue.

"Well, he dropped me home from piano, which by the way, he gave me his books for, and then he kissed my forehead," she said, head drooping and deciding to sulk.

"Is that a bad thing?" he asked earnestly.

"I don't know," she muttered. "I wanted you to talk some sense into me…"

He spat out the drink he'd ordered. "I'm not going to tell you to get over someone, Marinette."

"Why not?" she whined, hoping he'd knock some sense into himself now.

"Mari, do you like him?" A shrug. "Look, I'm not going to tell you it'll be easy, if you do figure out if you like him… do you want the truth?"

"Yes," she said quietly, waiting for bad news.

"Being with…" he looked around, " _him_ is gonna be hard. And it'll make you a prime target of Hawkmoth's, too. Mari, it's dangerous, and you have to be willing to accept him without the mask… and this is all when you figure out whatever you're feeling."

"But I just want it to go away," she groaned, "I don't have time for a crush, let alone homework."

"Look, pushing it away sometimes works, but sorting through it for hours… on a school day, Mari," he shrugged. She wasn't getting nearly the reaction she thought she'd get. Though, the more she'd thought about it, she wasn't sure what she was expecting. "But I'm free to talk about it, cos I'm guessing you don't want to be talking to Alya about this."

"She'd just think it was a 'fan-crush' and then I'd have to explain everything else," she said. "I'm sorry for bugging you with this, A."

"Hey, it's good to have someone to talk to," he said, "Because despite the fact that you listen to everyone else's problems, you seem to internalise your own."

He offered her his hand and pulled her from the seat, up and out the door. They walked in silence to school, but Adrien could tell she was grateful for the talk. He, however, was sweating in his shirt now. He hadn't meant to send her into a spin, in fact he wasn't even sure what he had meant to do. Adrien was caught once again staring out of the classroom into the overcast day, waiting for the bell to arrive. He was hoping to see some stars tonight. They reminded him of the glint he used to see in his mother's eyes. It was as if all the worries in the world disappeared when he looked at the stars. Nino, however, pulled him in the direction of the Champs-Elysées and begged to know what the hell was wrong. "Dude, if you don't tell me soon, I'm gonna burst," he said.

"Nino, it's really not that important," he said, wishing he'd back off.

"I know it's about Marinette, so if you won't tell me, I'll just have to figure it out for myself," he said decidedly.

He stopped, not trying to hide the shock on his face. "How'd you know?"

"It's simple really, every time you look at the girl, you get goo-goo eyes."

Adrien's face went pink and he struggled to find somewhere to hide. He didn't think he'd been that obvious, but clearly he was oblivious to that as well. "Please don't tell her, that's something I've gotta do for myself."

"I swear, my dude," Nino held up a hand to his chest. "But if ya need some help with the ladies…"

"Hey, don't forget that you're the one who needed my help to ask her to the zoo," Adrien said, strutting away.

On that note, Nino was sour for the rest of the day wandering around to find themselves getting some ice cream from Andre, and circling back to Adrien's house. "Do you wanna stay or have you got a date with Alya tonight?"

Nino sank into his shirt. "Don't play me like that, dude! It's not like I'm the one wearing the pants."

"I'm kidding, Nino," Adrien laughed, chucking his serviette into the bin. "Besides I wouldn't wanna get on Alya's bad side either."

Nino nodded, looking around as if she was about to appear. "Well, I'm gonna scram dude, but have fun figuring out what you're gonna do with Mari," he said, giving him knuckles as he walked away.

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" Adrien yelled when Nino was further down the street. Going inside, he didn't address anyone, but went straight to his room, and sat down at the piano. Scrolling through his phone he found a cover of Piano Man, sitting it down on the stand and listening intently. It was beautiful, and for some strange reason, he felt completely and utterly compelled to play it. Frowning slightly, it reminded him, oddly, of his father and the duet they had played before the music festival a couple of years back. It was a beautiful song, he thought to himself, as he heard the door click to his room.

"Sing us a song you're the piano man, sing us a song tonight, well we're all in the mood for a melody, and you got us feeling alright," his father sang quietly sitting down beside him. In an effort to prevent his jaw from dropping, Adrien raised his eyebrows.

"You -," Adrien began, quickly cut off by his father.

"Of course I know Piano Man," he said, "It was released the year I was born. Your mother loved that song."

"I was thinking about learning it," Adrien said, becoming aware of the effort his father was making.

"You should," he said, standing up quickly, "I'll look into some sheet music for you."

And just like that he was gone again. Sometimes the father Adrien knew was separated from the part of Gabriel that played the piano. There was a nuance about 'piano Gabriel', a softness and appreciation for talent and passion that Adrien never saw, even when his father was working on his designs. He was compelled to call Marinette now, just to tell her how strange it was that his father shared a speck of interest in his life. But he didn't want to burden her with that, instead he distracted himself by wondering what it would be like if his father had become a concert pianist instead of a fashion designer. He'd still have gone halfway across the world and back; Adrien was aware of how well he played. But maybe he'd have had more time for Adrien, and Adrien's mother Emilie. He shook his head. Seeing the stars tonight would be nice, he thought.

He fell into this trap once again, and began his night watch as Chat, just staring into the dark of the night, looking at the constellations his mother had taught him to recognise. Sitting on the rooftop he gazed at the sky which had progressed from the purple of the fading day into the dark cobalt where he could make out only the brightest stars. Over the Eiffel Tower, the moon was pale. He jumped around the rooftops in order to find the brightest star of the night, and did a double take when he saw it, almost hovering just above Marinette's house.

"Of course," he muttered, "Of course the brightest star would follow her around."

He could feel Plagg gagging underneath the suit, making a reference to cheese rather than love. He wondered if Plagg had ever felt love before. He knew Ladybug had a kwami, too, and he had an inkling that Plagg loved her, although he would never tell him so. They'd been around for thousands of years, and that aside after what Ladybug had told him about the other kwamis and the mysterious Master Fu, he assumed they'd been closer than what they were now. Moving quietly, he landed softly on Marinette's balcony and stood there for a moment. He knew he shouldn't trouble her, but he couldn't keep away.

A quiet voice rang out from below, "It's unlocked Chat Noir."

He jumped a little, but opened the hatch nonetheless. She pulled her legs up to her chest underneath the blankets of her bed and gave him a small smile. "What brings you here tonight Chat?"

"I was looking at the stars… and well I like to find the brightest one and see where it is… never mind, what are you doing, princess?" Adrien's eyes widened in surprise at his boldness, but recovered quickly, watching her carefully.

"I was watching The Lion King before you landed on my roof," she said, getting comfortable in her blankets once again.

"I love that movie!" he said, unable to help the excitement, but watching her flinch at the loudness. "Sorry, was that too loud?"

"You better hope my parents don't come up to investigate, cos I'm not explaining to them why Chat Noir is in my room," she said, maintaining the quiet level of her voice. Grinning she added, "Do you wanna watch?"

He nodded enthusiastically and rested beside her as she un-paused the movie, and snuggled into the pillow. Chat lifted the screen a little and recognised the stampede of wildebeest and immediately felt a sinking feeling. Sometimes, not that anyone knew it, he likened himself to Simba, as he had lost a parent too, and since he could never reach his father, it was like he'd had to fend for himself much like Simba before Timon and Pumbaa of course. But when he saw Marinette next to him, he reminded himself that he wasn't alone, just lonely at home. A single tear fell down her face and he watched as Simba called out Mufasa's name desperately. A quiet sob escaped Marinette's mouth and Chat felt a small fizzing inside him when she buried her head in his shoulder. Wrapping his arm around her, he whispered consolation to her, saying that it was only a movie.

"I know it's only a movie," she said between sobs, "But it's just not right."

Around five minutes later, Marinette was much happier, singing Hakuna Matata as loud as she could without waking her parents. He grinned as he watched her click her fingers to the rhythm, noticing she was perfectly in time. He only knew one other person who could do that without practice. His father. And it was something that Adrien had had to work at, and when it clicked, he was instantly annoyed by anyone in the music department who couldn't stay on time. And there were a few. It was something his mother used to tell him, there were people who would never be in time, and people that would always be in time, but you could work on it. And that's what he did. Every day for the better part of his first few years of playing, until he knew it was perfect. He knew that'd be different for Marinette. She settled back in, snuggled up against him and watched the rest of the movie, humming along to Can You Feel The Love Tonight and resting a hand against his spandex clad chest. As the movie finished, Chat looked down, watching sleep close in on Marinette. He smiled softly and closed his eyes. He'd never felt like this before. Although, he had no idea what 'this' feeling was.

"Mari, I should go," he spoke in a hushed voice and made to move, but her hand on his chest pushed him back down.

"Please stay," she murmured. "At least until I'm asleep."

"Mari…"

Her eyes opened and he saw the drowsiness that had seeped in. "Chat, _please_ just a few more minutes." The blue was imploring, desperate, reminding him of the face Ladybug had pulled when they fought Ms. Bustier as Zombizou. He blinked.

"Ok," he whispered, relaxing back into the pillows. He felt his cheeks beginning to turn red. Suddenly he felt the desire to get out of his suit, that instead Marinette's dainty fingers were touching his actual clothes instead of the barrier that was the leather. Heart hammering in his chest, Adrien realised that he'd been craving this kind of attention, yawning as if he didn't have enough air.

"Are you ok Chat, your heart is beating fast," came the slurred words from Marinette's mouth. "Do you wanna go home?"

He fought back the cry that was itching to scream no, instead opting for a toned-down response. "My heart always beats fast… go to sleep Mari, I won't go until you're asleep."

And so, Marinette closed her eyes, although the feeling of sleep was stealing her away, she wanted to hang on to the moment for a little longer. She wondered why Chat had lied to her. She'd been close enough to him to know that his heart wasn't a fast one, although she'd never tell him that was the kind of stuff she remembered. She felt his leather encased hand wrap around her own, the one she'd carelessly placed on his chest. Glad it was dark, she lay with her blush on her cheeks for a couple of minutes, hoping it would disappear. That was until she realised that Chat could indeed see in the dark, at which point she buried her head into his shoulder and waited for the persistent blush to recede. Slowly, it became harder for her eyes to stay open and her mouth felt dry and sleep became more appealing. Feeling herself slipping away, she mumbled "Night Chat," into the darkness and felt his soft lips upon her forehead once more.

When she woke in the morning, it was like the night before had never happened; even her laptop that had been previously on her bed, was on charge on her desk. And next to it, there was a note, just like the one that had been in her book. She tried not to smile at the little cat he'd drawn underneath the words.

 _'_ _Night Mari ~ C'._

Today would be a good day, she mused to herself. And maybe she'd see Chat again.

* * *

Authors Note: Sorry it took so long to upload guys, I think I lied to myself about the 2 weeks thing, and school's back now so there's no chance of having a set update day. Got a little stuck writing this chapter, but then the 13th episode of the 2nd season came out so I watched it for inspo. I'm sorry to anyone whom I am giving spoilers, and I probably should have put that in the description, but this is set after the second season as far as now, unless something dramatic happens like a reveal occurs this is after and not during the second season. As always thanks for reading and following.

Thanks, Cass.


	5. Chapter 5

So... I have been pretty much non-existent here for a while. And I feel like I need to apologise. I knew as soon as I wrote that I would stick to a schedule that I wouldn't and that there was no way I could, given the demanding subjects I stupidly picked at school. But the patience you guys have had is absolutely amazing and I thank you for not, you know, attempting to kill me or whatever. Yes, I've had exams and a couple of year 12 SAC's, but I feel like that is no excuse when writing is what I really love doing. So here is the next chapter, please feel free to leave reviews that are scathing of my two month absence :) Cass

* * *

Walking into school Marinette was dazed, thoughts of Chat completely blocking her brain of anything else. She found herself wondering once again what it would be like to reveal herself to him. Every time they were together she found more and more reasons to give her whole identity to Chat. He was loyal to a fault, a characteristic she'd be more likely to attribute to a dog than a Chat, yet she knew the immense and unholy power she held over him. He'd as quickly jump off a roof if she told him to, and the thought of this very action hurt her head. Stopping in her tracks, she realised they couldn't possibly work as equals with this knowledge springing to mind.

"You ok girl?" came Alya's steady voice, unsuspecting of Marinette's lies. Marinette began to feel sick.

"No," Marinette said, voice wavering, taking a seat at the nearest bench. Tears began to prick at her eyes. She fought back the torrent of emotions that were pushing forward desperately, as if a waterfall within her had picked up the rains of winter and wanted to burst through the ice. The thought of the akuma that could claim her was enough to calm her down, though insufficiently.

"Is she ok?" came the whisper from both Adrien and Nino as they arrived together, brows furrowed together. A soft tap at her jumper told her Adrien would listen.

"Hey Alya can I talk to you for a sec?" he said, pulling both her and Nino away, so that Nino wouldn't make the situation worse. Marinette thought she heard him say that he knew what it was about, and prayed that he wouldn't disclose what exactly he thought. Seconds later, she noticed Alya and Nino had walked away, looking skeptical but not saying a word. "Do you want to take this elsewhere?" the softly whispered words came falling gracefully from Adrien's mouth.

"Yes please," came the pathetic words barely uttered from Marinette's mouth. As he held her arm, guiding her across the school yard, and pulling her into a secluded corner of the dusty library and watched her carefully as he sat.

"Are you feeling ok?" he asked as Marinette sank into the chair.

"No," she mumbled, head spinning crazily under the new revelation. "It's Chat."

"I figured," he said, looking visibly worried. "What happened?"

"I know you're not going to understand, but I realised this morning… I feel like I'm… I don't know how to describe it, Adrien. It's just he's getting really close, and I don't hate it…"

"And?" he probed, more confused now than worried. "Your point?"

"I feel like if I get too close, I could become dangerous to him," she said. A scoff. Looking up she frowned waiting for Adrien to explain himself.

"You really think he can't handle that?" he asked.

"I don't think he will be able to deal with me if I'm akumatised," she said, hoping her voice wasn't as sincere as she'd heard it. She could've sworn Adrien almost rolled his eyes.

"Why?"

"Because, I just don't think he will, I know that's probably not a sufficient answer for you, but…" she shrugged, turning away and hoping it would suffice.

He hummed. "And you don't think that Ladybug will be able to stop you?" It almost sounded like a challenge, but she knew it wasn't, and the smoky feeling clouding her throat was in her lungs now. She took a deep breath.

"I'm not sure," she said.

"You're one of the most level-headed people I know, why on earth are you worrying about getting akumatised?" he asked gently.

"I don't want to hurt Chat." A simple, unspoken truth she'd never acknowledged until now. He took her hand, a simple mind-blowing gesture, that took her breath away once again. The suffocating familiarity of it hurt, yet she couldn't quite seem to pinpoint what it was. Taking a deep breath, her head swam once again, but she ignored it and tried her best smile. Marinette knew Adrien could tell it was fake, but she was thankful that he continued to hold her hand. She needed to talk to Master Fu.

The day went by quickly, no one uttered a word about her mini meltdown earlier in the day and Adrien had done his job as promised. Alya, though desperate to know what was going on, did not want to be responsible for round two of the meltdown, and left it alone. Hopefully she could convince Marinette to talk to her about it. Talking to Alya, however, was the last thing on her mind as Marinette approached Master Fu's workshop as she hoped and prayed that Master Fu would let her have her way.

The jingle of the bell rang out about the shop and he appeared behind her, just as he had predicted her presence.

"Ah, Marinette," he muttered, "How are you?"

She inhaled deeply and licked her lips nervously. "Tired, actually. I need to talk to you about Chat Noir."

And so, she explained going through the ins and outs of what she hoped would be coherent enough for him to understand. He seemed to understand well enough, nodding whenever he couldn't manage to get a word in. He waited patiently for her to run out of steam when he began.

"So, you want to bring Chat Noir here with you, is that correct?" he said, thinking hard.

"Yes, I don't think I can do this without him anymore, and in any case, I don't want to; it makes me feel like I'm holding something over him that makes us unequal as partners…"

"Then why on earth are you having this conversation with me?" he said incredulously. "You need to be having this conversation with Chat Noir, not me."

"So, you're ok with it?" she asked, hoping she wasn't getting the wrong idea.

"Yes! Now get out of here and go have a conversation with Chat Noir," he said, getting up and pushing her out the door, as an old lady hobbled in, "And make sure not to hurt your back again," he added for good measure.

She grinned as she ran out the door, away and back to her house, mentally beginning to prepare what she wanted to say in her head. The green surrounding her outside was overwhelming, the different shades reminding her of Chat's expressive eyes. Eyes watering slightly, she trudged on, letting herself be so distracted as to walk right by her front door. Back tracking, she went in, smiling at customers, giving her parents a halfhearted hello as she dragged her feet up the stairs and finally collapsing on her bed. It was patrol night tonight, she thought, although she wasn't sure what she'd say, or how he'd react but the feeling of holding something over Chat was beginning to overwhelm her.

"Breathe, Marinette," came Tikki's soothing voice from her side, gently resting on her cheek.

"Tikki what do I say?" she asked desperately.

"Just calm down, rehearsing is only going to make you more anxious," she chattered, "Besides, I'm not sure why you think you've mucked something up, he doesn't seem to care."

"I'm using him to play piano, and he only goes to see Master Fu by himself, rather than both of us going at the same time… I don't know I just want to feel like equals."

Sighing, Tikki patted her cheek. "I think it'll be ok."

So, she passed the time by studying for her upcoming tests until there was five minutes until patrol. Looking around her room anxiously, Marinette stood up and began to pace. Maybe he won't show up, she thought, shaking her head. There was no way he'd miss a chance to see her. And from her quick heartbeat, she knew there was no way she'd resist either. Taking a deep breath, she looked at Tikki, who nodded. Marinette uttered 'spots on' moving slowly today, rather than rushing herself. Revising what she told herself over the past hour and a half all memory of what she had planned disintegrated at the sight of Chat standing, waiting, at the top of the Eiffel Tower.

He stood patiently, waiting, as he had been for at least ten minutes now. Maybe she lost track of time, he thought, but usually she was organised. Reaching out a hand, he was surprised to see her walk into it rather than laugh and cast it away as he was so used to. "My lady?" he whispered, voice barely noticeable above the wind.

"I need to talk to you Chat," she said, just as quiet, yet resolute. His brows furrowed at this, something was up.

"Ok," he said, "I'm listening." She pulled him to a bench and sat down gingerly.

"I know you know about Master Fu," she said. "And I promised you that. But I can't stand that we don't go see him together."

"Ok…" he said, confused to say the least.

"I feel like I've been holding some kind of power over you because I found out about Fu first, and then I didn't tell you and we don't… I miss seeing you, Chat and I want to be equals."

"We are equals, bugaboo," he said, blinking. The conversation was unexpected to say the least. But he was forcing himself to pay attention as her eyes caught the glint of the stars again.

"I know I just feel like you do so much for me and I can't ever repay you for that, you know."

He could feel his eyebrows raising, but was struggling to find the right words. Sure, he'd done stuff for her, but it was nothing compared to the service she did for everyone else. "You have realised you do stuff for people, too?"

"Yeah, but I'm not talking about 'people' I'm talking about you. I'm never going to be able to thank you enough times for taking hits for me and I'm never going to be able to repay you for that and it bothers me that you don't seem to care about this."

"I don't care because we're partners," he said, "We're a _team_ and we work together, I have your back, you've got mine, ok?" He gave her an imploring look, trying desperately to communicate this to her.

"I just don't want you to hate me…" she said voice smaller than he'd ever heard it. Blinking, then shaking his head, a jaw dropped.

"You don't think I hate you, do you?" he said, taking her hand ever-so-gently with a light grip. She didn't let go. Instead, she gripped it tighter and took a deep breath.

"No, I just… I don't know Chat, sometimes I feel like you don't trust me because I keep you in the dark and -,"

"I know you do it because you have to," he said, pulling her closer. She wrapped her arms around his torso and dug her head into the crook of his neck, shaking it slightly as his heart beat picked up slightly. She was tearing herself up over this? Adrien gulped at the thought that he had made her feel this way.

"I'm sorry Chat, I know this is the last thing you wanted," she said, the sniffling just audible against his chest.

"I wanted to see you," he whispered, holding her tighter. There they stayed for what felt like hours, just holding each other on the top of the tower. Finally, when he had managed to gently pry her hands away she spoke.

"I want to reveal our identities, Chat." He had never thought that a seven word sentence could undo him like it did. Sitting there, almost gasping for air whilst she sat placidly beside him, calmer than he'd ever seen her when discussing this particular topic.

"Are you sure?" he said slowly, deliberately, waiting for her to reconsider what she'd said. But instead there was a firm, albeit grim, nod from beside him. "I'm… I'm sorry bugaboo, I'm confused. What's brought this on?"

"I… we've known each other for years now and you're the only person I've ever trusted with my life and you've never let me down. I just feel like it's time. We can't beat Hawkmoth without advantages up our sleeves, and I know it's risky, but I'm going to ask you to trust me for the millionth time."

"I will always trust you," he said.

"There's a specific way we'll go about it, though," she said, watching him closely. By this point Adrien was beyond confused, and perhaps a little weary at her suggestion. "We don't know that much about each other, and I think that perhaps if we learn more, maybe we'll be able to unlock certain powers and get a better gauge of how we work together, if you get what I mean."

Blinking slowly, Adrien couldn't quite wrap his head around this. "So, we'll play twenty questions on patrol?"

"If you don't want to -,"

"No!" he shouted. She flinched slightly at the sound, but relaxed again as he said, "No, I think it's a great idea."

"I know it's a very drawn out way of… finding out who we are, but I don't think I'd be able to handle it if… I just don't think I'll be able to cope," she said. "Thank you for not freaking out about this Chaton."

"Oh, I am, I'm barely keeping it together," he muttered. "Just… we'll play it safe for a while, since we last saw Rena, it's gotten more dangerous when we've had to deal with Hawkmoth."

"I play it safe if you play it safe, deal?" she said.

He nodded quietly and stood up. Chat took her to the edge of the tower they stood and watched the city quietly. The wind was rustling the trees quietly as the lights that had short supply of electricity flickered in the distance. They stayed like that until it was impossible to stay there, inexcusable not to bid goodbye. "This is why we do it, bugaboo," he whispered, gesturing widely to the city. "Are you sure you want to tell me?"

"Yes," she whispered quietly. "I trust you Chat."

It was excruciating to leave, worse to see her face mirroring his, like leaving without a kiss or hug was killing her. "Goodnight bugaboo."

"Night Chat."

Adrien was relieved to finally have freedom from his suit, but Plagg had other ideas.

"Isn't there a baker's daughter who needs a hug?"

After thoroughly discussing this development with Ladybug, Adrien resolved to see Marinette. She would know what to do. He'd wanted this for years, but as he raced across the rooftops, he wasn't sure whether his want had reduced her to this conclusion. That she would have no choice but to reveal herself to him. Admittedly this had only come to his mind when Plagg had told him this. But now he was worried it was his fault. So, when he landed on the balcony and saw Marinette drawing, he was surprised.

"Hi Chat," she said, not looking up, head buried in her sketch book. "What brings you here?"

"I just wanted someone to talk to."

"About?" she questioned, still not having looked up from her sketch book. There were detailed annotations of whatever she was designing that Adrien could see, but instead he focused on what he said.

"I… Ladybug wants to reveal her secret identity to me," he said, looking around then sitting beside her. Marinette looked up now, curious. Maybe she'd spooked him earlier.

"That's a good thing, isn't it?"

"I feel like maybe I've forced her into it… I just, I've wanted to know for so long and now she hits me with a 'I think it's time to reveal ourselves' and says it's because she doesn't want to feel like we're not a team but -,"

"She definitely hasn't made this decision with your want in mind Chat," Marinette said. Looking back down at her book, she deliberated, then shut it, deciding to give this conversation her full attention.

"I just thought maybe she felt pressured into -,"

"No," Marinette laughed, shaking her head. "Chat, you know she'd never lie to you, right? Well don't work yourself up about it, then. She'd never do anything that would jeopardise her relationship with you and she would never make such a big decision without considering all the ramifications first, so I don't think you need to worry about it."

Putting his face in his hands, he sat there. "I… I liked her for a very long time," he said, not bothering to look for a response. This gave Marinette the perfect opportunity to look shocked without having to make an excuse for the face she made.

"What?" she spluttered, looking at Chat wildly.

"I liked her for a very long time," he said matter-of-factly, like it was the truest thing he'd ever said. "But now, when I'm finally able to move on, when I'm finally able to accept the fact she's unobtainable she says 'I'm gonna drop my secret identity.'"

"Chat, think about it logically, even if she does become obtainable now, how much do you know about her to even consider it?" she said, finally looking up.

Hand moving up to his chin, he scratched it. Marinette watched as he did this and wondered what on earth was going through Chat's brain. She thought she'd made it clear, she wanted to know his identity. Sure, she'd known about the small crush Chat had on her as Ladybug, but she didn't think he'd been pining over her. And for what? She wasn't perfect, not as Ladybug or Marinette. "Mari?"

"Hmm? Yes?"

"I don't want her like that. I… I just know that she's trying to soften the blow, like when I see her I know it'll crush me anyway."

"What do you mean, Chat?"

"I feel like she knows me, as in as a civilian. And I don't know how many questions can prepare me for finding out if I'm right."

She dropped her pencil, but ducked her head under the table to grab it, as to hide the shock on her face. "Chat she's not trying to kill you!"

"I know, but I… what if I shock her?"

"I mean you're pretty shocking anyway…" she giggled as he swatted at her hand.

"Don't forget I could retract my piano teaching, princess."

"You wouldn't!"

He grinned and took her hand. Hoping he wouldn't notice the blush slowly forming on her cheeks, Marinette looked down at the ground and hoped he'd let her hand go. "You're right," he whispered, "I wouldn't. Care to join me?"

"Ok," she whispered, gluing her eyes shut as Chat lifted her up and bounded across buildings into the night. When he set her down again, she noticed they were once more in the piano room, and smiled. He set to work lighting candles around the room and waited for her to sit.

"A little birdy told me that you were a bit upset today," he whispered next to her ear. She looked away. "Mari?"

"I'm ok, Chat, I just… I don't want to see you get hurt," she said, exhaling and blowing her fringe around.

"It's my job, princess," he said gently. "I know you don't want to see me get hurt, but trust me it'd kill me if I didn't do my job and you got hurt."

"Chat… you don't understand," she said, trying to make him see.

"You don't want me to fight you if you get akumatised," he said, gently moving her face so she had to look at him. Rather than dwelling on how he knew this, Marinette took to sulking. "I won't let him hurt you, Mari."

"I know, I just don't want to hurt you," she said, rolling her eyes and putting her hands on her hips.

"You think you could hurt me?" he said.

"I know I could," she winked, strolling over to the piano. Lifting the lid, she pulled the chair out and sat gently. "Now can you teach me the start of Fur Elise?"

Scoffing, he stood over her and put her hand on the piano. "Bear with me, ok? Put your pinky on the E and your ring finger on the D sharp."

"D sharp?"

"The sharps are the keys to the immediate right of the note, ok, so there's D -,"

"So D sharp would be here?" she asked, pointing at the black key to the right of the D.

"Correct! Now, just get a feel of toggling between them, because your pinky won't be very strong cos it never gets used," he said, as Marinette pulled a face. It was strange to use the pinky separately, she thought as she toggled between the keys, the sound familiar to her ears. Unfortunately, it wasn't the only thing familiar to her as Chat's warm breath brushed her ears every time he breathed. And it was rather distracting. Shivering, Marinette tried to focus on the keys in front of her, rather than the boy whispering in her ear. Giving up, as she thought she'd progressed a few bars, she asked him to play it for her again, and sat back listening to the perfectly played notes. When he'd finished, she looked up at him and smiled lazily.

" _That_ is my favourite version of Fur Elise, Chat," she said.

Adrien looked at her, watching the sleepy smile on her face. He hadn't meant to get so attached, but every time he looked into her eyes… it was just entrancing. Although it was awful to play with the claws, he put up with it for the look she gave him. Looking at the pink tinge on her cheeks, Adrien suddenly found it increasingly hard to ignore how well it suited her. Especially when it was him that made it so. He couldn't stop himself from leaning in closer, struck by the blueness of her eyes.

"Mari…" he spoke, trying to make clear what he wanted.

"Chat, I've never…" she whispered, and he thought he caught a slight tone of panic.

"I won't if you don't want me to," he said, slowly, gently taking her hand.

"I…"

"I haven't either, Mari," he mumbled, hoping she'd catch on. He watched her face closely as she realised what he'd revealed to her. She gripped his hand tighter and he leaned a little further in. "I'll stop if you want."

Her eyes glistened as she shook her head. As her eyes closed, Adrien saw that light catching the blue, catching a glimpse of the same fear that was there when… when Ladybug was left with only half of her mask. All of the times he'd ever seen her panic or scared, it was there on her face. Unsure of what to do, Adrien was left questioning everything he'd known. In the split second of realising, grinning and then frowning, he cupped her cheeks gently as if to stall the emotions that were threatening to burst free. With the pounding of his heart, churning of his stomach, he couldn't hear anything other than them, her quiet breathing and patient waiting. Closing his eyes, he savoured every second of the kiss which was sweet and soft against his lips. He pulled away slowly, blinking slowly and trying to catch his breath. Watching Marinette do the same, Adrien's eyes flicked from her eyes to her freckles to her lips, raking over everything that he could possibly take in. All of her features were so strikingly similar he was at a loss for words. And he knew he should have told her that instant he knew who she was but all he could do was stare in awe. "Mari," he whispered, trying to find some semblance of proper speech. "If you want to go home…"

"Chat, can you stay?" she whispered, her tone just as dazed as his own.

"At yours?" he asked stupidly, trying to snap his brain out of the fuzz that had enveloped it.

"Yes."

"Of course, m-Princess," he said, snapping awake as he tried to use Ladybug's pet name. "Let's get you home."

He lifted her gently and carried her silently across Paris to her room setting her down as gently as he had in the piano.

"Night Mari," he said as he settled in next to her, reminding himself to leave early.

"Night Chat," she whispered, a soft blush on her cheeks. God tomorrow was going to be difficult for Adrien.


	6. Chapter 6

The feeling of walking into school that morning was especially uplifting for Adrien, who realised he would have all of his classes with Marinette that day. Not that that had been a deciding factor in his mood until quite recently. Sighing, he reached a hand up to his hair and dragged it down his face. God, he was in deep.

"Hi Adrien!" came the signature chirp from behind him as he raised his head to find blue orbs right in front of his face.

"Hey, Mari, walk to the lockers with me?"

"Of course," she said, a faint blush resting on her cheeks. They walked in comfortable silence, and although he knew he was being less than subtle, Adrien let his eyes wander every so often. All he could think about was the damned kiss. It had made tangible the idea of dating Marinette, but at the back of his brain was an annoying niggle that sung; 'except she kissed _Chat'._ Fighting off the urge to run his hand through his hair again, he walked on, and made sure avert his eyes from her.

Walking silently beside him, Marinette wondered what on earth was going on with Adrien. She pretended not to notice the looks he was blessing her with, but it was glaringly obvious. And the day after Chat had kissed her no less. If Adrien did not feel something for her in the least, she would pass it off as concern, but if not… oh god help her. She debated between telling him about Chat, but thought the better of it, for now at least.

"Did you speak to Chat?" came the unexpected question.

 _Oh, I did more than speak to him_ , she thought. Shaking her head at that thought, she muttered a yes.

"Oh didn't it go well?" he said, looking at her as he shoved his bag into his locker.

"On the contrary, it went all _too_ well," she said, pointedly looking at anything other than him. A chuckle. She looked up.

" _All too well_?" he questioned, a slight smirk gracing his lips.

"Take a wild guess," she muttered, feeling her go redder. Still a smirk. As if he knew. Did he? "You don't already know do you?"

"No, would you just tell me already?"

"He kissed me," she whispered. Shoving her books into her locker, she made herself busy as to distract herself. When he didn't reply, she forced herself to look at him. "What?"

He seemed to be tossing between things to say, and Marinette thought she could see the cogs turning in his brain. "Did you not want him to?"

"I don't know anymore, Adrien. I kissed back, so does that answer the question?" she said desperately, knowing her voice was rising, but hoping he'd give her an answer to the question she'd been asking herself.

"You _what_?" came the perfectly time entrance of Alya. "When did you two kiss?"

Just great, she thought as she scrambled for an excuse that didn't give away the truth. Racking her brain for something, anything, that would get Alya off her case, Marinette felt her heart sink into her stomach. She gave Adrien a pleading look, and hoped that he'd do the thinking for her. She felt a hand take hers lightly, and looked down, feeling giddy when she saw his own with hers. "Oh shit," she said softly.

"That's for us to know and for you to find out, Alya," he grinned cheekily, not letting go of her damned hand. Great now Adrien and Chat were screwing with her brain. She wondered how she was going to survive the day.

"Adrien," she muttered. "I need to put my bag back. And Alya, please don't go announcing it to the class."

"Of course, but I need details," she said as she spotted Nino, leaving immediately to go and tell him the latest news from their friends.

"I'm sorry, that was all I could think of," Adrien breathed out as soon as she had gone, hanging his head and seemingly prepared to be yelled at. How could she yell at him when he'd grabbed her hand? God, even that was enough to throw her into a spin.

"I was the one who couldn't think of any excuse," she said gently, daring to touch a hand to his bicep. "Besides, it certainly wasn't the worst thing I can think of." An eyebrow wiggle. Something that she had seen before. But not from him.

"It's not the worst thing I can think of either," he said, a smirk crossing his lips again.

"Oh god, what have you gotten us into?" she asked, daring to peek out from behind her hands. A shrug was his response as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled into her hair. "I'm sure I could have come up with something better."

It was strangely familiar being wrapped up in Adrien's arms, however, Marinette could not put her finger on why, so she suggested, quite breathlessly, that they walk into class together. Of course, this was under the assumption that he would not be touching any part of her, and yet she was wrong. Slinging an arm around her waist as they walked up the stairs, was one thing, waving to everyone else as they walked past like it would not draw attention to them was another entirely.

"I don't like attention, Adrien," she hissed as they reached the top.

"I wasn't trying to… you know this is going to give you attention, whether you like it or not, right?" he said, seemingly attempting to calm her down, however, not guilty in the least for this quite obvious observation. Trying to dodge out of his arms and into the classroom, Marinette sighed as he caught her elbow and pulled her closer again.

"I'm sorry," he whispered in her ear for what felt like the millionth time that day. "I'll make it up to you, I swear."

It was fair to say that the day would not, and did not, pass uneventfully for either Marinette and Adrien, and the culmination of it seemed to be disaster that was last period chemistry, where they were inadvertently paired together, Chloe appeared to turn red.

"But, Mrs. Mendeleiev can't you put me with Adrien," began the whining. "It's clear that I'm much better suited to Adrien than _she_ is."

"I will not hear any of it Miss Bourgeois," came the reply.

"I want to be with Adrien! Marinette doesn't deserve him!" she shouted. The class stopped. Although their teacher hadn't caught on to what the argument was truly about, it was clear everyone else had. Rolling her eyes, Marinette forced Adrien to get back to work, despite many of his attempts to cool the situation. _At least he cares_ , she heard the little voice at the back of her mind. Why wouldn't he? They were friends. _Friends_. Her heart began to ache halfway through the lesson as she mulled over her options. She knew she had to do something about Chat, but now he was as important to her as Adrien was. She couldn't break her partner's heart, yet somehow both he and Adrien had the capability of breaking hers. It wasn't until she went over to get the sodium carbonate that Chloe finally decided to approach.

"How did you brainwash him?" she hissed, carefully picking her own standard solution and double checking the calculations meticulously.

"You know Chloe, I would tell you but it really isn't any of your business," she fired back. "I've got more important things to do than waste my time trying to explain something you don't understand."

Instantly she regretted. Knowing there was another akuma no doubt flying towards the building, she hurried back to her desk. "Adrien," she whispered.

"Yes?"

"I think I might have made Chloe a little upset," she said, wringing her hands together desperately. Turning around curiously, he raised an eyebrow.

"Akuma upset, or was it justified?"

"It's never justified, Adrien, akuma worthy or not," she said, returning to the beakers of hydrochloric acid. Warm fingers pried her own away from the pipette, setting it down on the bench.

"And what she gives you every day is justified?" he questioned, crossing his arms. Oh boy. She was done for. That stare could kill.

"Adrien," she whined, "If I've just caused an akuma, what do I do?"

"Leave it to the professionals," he shrugged. Sighing, he shook his head. "Mari, it'll be fine, trust me."

The words rang in her ears. All this trusting was giving her a migraine. She took a step back. "What?"

"Trust me," he said, enunciating every syllable specifically for her ears. Quickly looking around the class, he snatched her hands from beside her and squeezed them, giving her a reassuring smile. A screech came from behind them.

"Adrien!" came Chloe's voice. "How could you lower your standards to _her_ level? She's pathetic and clumsy and… and she'll never be me!"

The smile was gone, and instead there was a slight scowl that Marinette noticed on his lips as he stood rigid in front of her. "If you'll excuse me Mari," he said through gritted teeth. Her face fell instantly as she clung desperately to his hands.

"Adrien please," she pleaded, as he pulled away and stood to face Chloe.

Everyone had stopped what they were doing by then, beakers and flasks firmly in their hands as they watched the scene unfold.

"Please don't talk about my girlfriend like that Chloe, because although you may not like her, I happen to very much," he said. "And this is the only time I ever want to have this conversation with you because I still consider you my friend, but I won't be if you bring this up again, ok? Marinette is not pathetic, and her clumsiness has little effect on her amazing personality and more to do with your lack of genuine reasons to dislike her. Now get back to your assessment for all of our sakes."

Watching him stride back over to their bench was overwhelming as Marinette tried to keep herself in tact before the last bell. "I… Adrien?" she whispered, inching closer.

"Yes?" he whispered back, taking her hands again.

"Thank you." Now they were mere inches away.

"No problem." He leant down as her eyes fluttered closed, and pressed his lips gently to the very corner of her mouth.

He had no idea what had gotten into him. He could practically hear Plagg screaming 'Adrien your Chat is showing', yet he couldn't bring himself to regret it. Deep down, he knew he wouldn't be able to keep it up, and that she would hate him for taking advantage of her like this when he knew she was Ladybug, but he knew that he had loved Marinette equally for longer than he wanted to admit. And he just gone and declared his adoration for her in front of the class, when Marinette was the only one who knew that the relationship they were now faking was, well, fake. And she just continued her work like nothing had even happened. He checked the time on his watch, signaling five minutes until the end of the lesson. Most of their equipment was away, but he was yet to record the results, and saw Marinette reaching for her sheet. Darting for it, he took hold of her wrist, unable to stop the Chat like grin gracing his face.

"I haven't written down my results, Mari," he winked. He could see the blush on her cheeks now. Finally, it was working. It would be easier to tell her, but, he thought, that was not their way. After what seemed like a lifetime the bell rang and Adrien made his way over to his desk, cleaning up the contents of pencil case.

"I'll lock the door, just shut it on your way out kids," Mrs. Mendeleiev said, waving goodbye.

Adrien didn't turn to see who it was. He'd seen everyone else leave, and had felt her presence enough to know exactly which blue haired beauty was behind him.

"Yes?"

"What… What was all that about?" she asked quietly.

"Um… well you see I was just…" he had nothing, absolutely nothing that wasn't incriminating. He'd nearly called her princess just seconds ago, and that would have been more than a shock.

"Adrien?" she said, stepping closer to touch his arms. "There was no way what you did back there was an accident. So, you've gotta tell me what's going on."

"Well the thing is…" he began, still not knowing where he was going. "I kinda…maybe, just a little bit, have a crush on you…"

Her jaw dropped. "Oh, shit."

"Yeah," he said, trying to ignore the hand on his arm.

"Ah…"

"You don't have to say anything I just thought maybe I should tell you."

"I… Adrien, I um…"

Oh god, now she was uncomfortable. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable, Mari, I just thought it wasn't fair for you not to know if we're gonna convince Alya of whatever this is."

"No!" she exclaimed. Regaining her composure, she sighed, "No. I… I don't know what to say. I've, um, well I've liked you for a long time, but now that Chat's been hanging out me I don't… ever since that bloody kiss, my head has had a million thoughts running through it. I mean, he's a crazy person don't get me wrong, but he's so endearing and I…I can't bring myself to break his heart."

"So, you're…conflicted?"

"Well, it was nice to admire him from a distance, if you get what I mean, but when we got closer, it was like he was… right there and, well, he was sweet and kind and safe. I feel like I've known him forever. And then he kissed me and I kinda lost it. So, yes, I suppose I am."

She had known him long enough that was true. But she didn't know he knew that. And now she felt the same way for Chat as she did for Adrien, which in a way was good. However, now he was in a competition with himself. Sweet Jesus, what had he done? "Maybe you should talk to him about it?"

"Yeah, I'll sort it out and, hopefully we can just let it go. I mean I'm sure that he didn't really mean it. Besides, he's a _superhero_."

He fought back a scoff, barely. Like being a superhero would stop him seeing Marinette. "Well, talk to him and figure it out, and then we can talk about this," he said, gesturing between them. Behind them, he heard the mop of the school cleaner and pulled her out the door. They walked silently out the gates, and stopped when they saw the car waiting for him. "Just a sec," he said, walking towards the car.

"Hey Gorilla, can I walk Marinette home please, it's only across the road, you can wait here for me," he asked, hopefully, watching the nod or shake of his head. A grunt followed a nod, and he beamed, dumping his bag in the car and returning to Marinette. They chatted as they walked, as Adrien debated between telling her that he was Chat, or leaving it for twenty questions. In the end, he couldn't bring himself to do it, knowing that she'd probably slap him then and there, and that his confidence was seriously lacking without Chat's bravado. Until he slipped up.

"See ya, princess," he said, waving goodbye, as she walked inside the bakery. She opened the door, and stepped back outside, visibly confused.

"What did you just say?"

He scrambled for words, hoping he'd find something in the depths of his excuses. "It's gotta be believable, doesn't it?"

A raised eyebrow. He was convincing nobody. "Really? Cos it sounds awfully familiar."

He didn't find that hard to believe. "Well how about we make it… our thing?" God, he was killing himself. He knew that she recognised the voice. God, she was going to kill him on patrol tonight. She nodded, and then waved him goodbye, shoving him towards his car, which Gorilla had parked in front of the bakery as an attempt to hurry him up.

* * *

They were huddled up against a brick chimney, not exactly sure which part of Paris they'd gotten to, just sitting and listening to each other's answers and memorising their answers. And they both knew they gone past the twenty questions allocated, but it was addictive, especially when they both knew they were close to the truth. He'd given her enough hints in the past hour, anyway.

"If you didn't have to sleep, what would you do with the extra time?" he asked.

"God, I don't have time to sleep as it is, so probably school work," she replied

"That's a shit answer, come on my lady, surely you have something better than that, what would you do if you didn't have school work?"

"Probably design some clothes, that's one of my hobbies," she said, looking out across the rooftops. He, of course, already knew this, but she was still working on the whole identity reveal thing.

"What's your favourite piece of clothing you own, then?" he asked, wondering what stuff she could have made for herself.

"A blue scarf, it had the most amazing material, and I loved making it. Actually, it's not mine, I made it for a friend, for his birthday, and I think he still doesn't know I made it for him. Ok your turn, how often do you play sports?"

"Well I have fencing a couple of times a week, at the Françoise Dupont high school, and then every time we get an akuma."

"Well, if it wasn't for being Ladybug, I probably wouldn't get any exercise," she giggled, shaking her head. "I don't have a whole lot of time on my hands, as you can see. Are you usually early or late?"

"Early," he groaned, "for everything. You always seem to be late to patrol."

"Oh, I'm late to everything," she said, "I'm late to school most days and I live across the road from it. It'd be nice to be early for something for once."

"What are some small things that make your day better?" he asked for his next question.

"My friends," she answered instantly. "Wait, they're not really small, are they?"

"Well, are they a big part of your life?"

"Yes," she said. "Well, I like waking up to the smell of the bread cooking downstairs, and sound of rain on my window pane. I like seeing my friends smile when I get to school late, and Chloe roll her eyes, even though she has no reason to. I like the random conversations my group and I have during lunch, and going to our little café and ordering the same thing every time."

He had no words for that, and resorted to thinking of another question. "Ok, what's something that a ton of people are obsessed with but you just don't get the point of?"

"XY, the singer. He's just awful! Like they could be listening to Jagged Stone, but instead they're listening to that stupid repetitive shit," she replied, like she knew exactly what the question would be.

He'd given her enough hints, Marinette thought, but she had to be sure, however she couldn't think of a single question that would give him away properly. So instead, she just asked, "What kind of music do you enjoy most?"

"Well, you know I play, because of the whole Marinette thing, but I love Jagged Stone, too," he nodded, bopping his head along to what Marinette assumed was one of his songs. "What's the dumbest thing you've done that actually turned out pretty well?"

Looking around at him, she knew his answer would be far more entertaining than her own, but she answered nevertheless, "Stole my friends phone to delete an embarrassing voicemail, you?"

"You what?"

"It was when Theo did that statue of us, and it was unveiled, that's why I was late," she shrugged, "It was a life or death situation."

"More than an akuma?"

"Way more than an akuma," she said, deadly serious. "What about you?"

"Well… I ran away from home one Christmas," he said. "A couple of Christmas' ago, actually. Everybody hated me for it."

Her eyes widened. Surely not. Well, after everything he'd told her today, it was more than likely, but why on earth couldn't he have just told her he was Chat today? When he'd called her princess. She wanted to call him out on it, but he just continued the questions.

"What movie title best describes your life?"

"A series of unfortunate events, even though it's a TV show," she grinned, even though her head was spinning.

"Surely not, you're Ladybug! I mean, you're the lucky one!" he chuckled.

"Well, I suppose when you put it that way… I'm not sure, then, what about you?" she replied, rolling her eyes, nevertheless.

"A series of unfortunate events, even though it's a TV show," he grinned, "Because I have bad luck as a civilian as well as Chat. Here's my question what is the luckiest thing that has happened to you?"

She stopped, thinking hard. Lots of things were lucky for Marinette, and lots of good things had happened to her, especially in recent times, but she certainly couldn't discount becoming Ladybug. "Becoming Ladybug, I suppose," she said, nodding to herself. "Because I wouldn't have had half the experiences without the miraculous, and my kwami is just so precious I can't imagine her going to anyone else. Besides, then I wouldn't have met you."

"I think I would have met you anyway," he said, looking at her carefully. She took a deep breath. Come on, Marinette, now is not the time for avoiding eye contact, she thought. Steeling herself, she looked at him.

"Chat are you sure you want to know who I am?"

"I already know, princess," he said, sounding exactly the same as he had when he'd dropped her home that afternoon. Now she knew for sure. And now she had to say something back.

"Adrien?"

"Hi."

"Hi," she said breathlessly.

"Are you alright?"

"I just need a moment to process it," she said, whilst her mind screamed that she'd been an idiot.

"Say whatever you need to say," he said, watching her carefully.

"WHAT THE HELL? YOU'VE BEEN CHAT NOIR THIS WHOLE TIME AND I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW! I AM SUCH AN IDIOT, OH BOY, AND TIKKI'S KNOWN THIS WHOLE DAMN TIME AND I TOLD ALYA IT COULD NEVER BE YOU!"

"Good observations, my lady," he said, his eyes glinting with laughter. "Will you be ok?"

"Yes," she said slowly, "But you could have told me you knew earlier. How did you find out, by the way?"

"Well I had my suspicions, and then at the piano lesson the other night, well, it was actually your eyes," he said.

"My eyes?"

"Yeah, it was the scared look that I've only seen in your eyes a couple of times and I just knew it was you," he smiled. "And the fact that you thought you could kick my ass."

"Well I can, can't I?" she whispered, moving closer.

"Well you have launched me halfway across Paris, haven't you?" he grinned, this time, his eyes darting between hers and her lips. "Can we try that kiss thing again?"

She nodded, hands already at the base of his neck, playing with his hair. He leaned in, more nervous this time than the last, and pressed his lips to hers, closing his eyes. It was short and sweet, and a promise of more to come, and when they pulled away, both had a love-struck grin on their face.

"I should get you home," he said, "I've already kept you up enough."

"I'm happy to stay up with you."

"I know, but I'm dropping you to school tomorrow, and I insist on seeing Chloe's face when we walk in holding hands."

"Oh, you are, are you? What if I don't want to hold your hand."

"We both know you do."

* * *

AN: So, after not uploading for what feels like years, I have finally uploaded the final chapter for this story. I was going to make it longer, but I've been fairly busy with my year 11 studies this year, and my year 12 English exam was about a week ago, so that's where my priority was. As I'm going into year 12 in a couple of weeks, I've decided I will hold off on making any more full-on stories and stick to one-shots. Thank you to all readers who actually stuck with this story as I know how annoying it can be to wait for ages for a chapter to come out.

Thanks, Cass.

(Get keen for season 3)


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